Harry Ransom Center acquires work by Alison Rossiter

Alison Rossiter continuously reminds us of the quiet beauty that lies within overlooked or otherwise discarded materials, particularly at a time when digital images are so extensively consumed and then forgotten. Rossiter’s artistic process is rooted in her use of vintage photographic paper, serving as a photographic medium that speaks to the history and 19th-century origins of photography, as well as the aesthetics of Modernism. In many of her works, Rossiter develops the paper completely without intervention in its form or value. In others, she selectively develops areas of the paper, creating elegant geometric arrangements. The results reveal information about the paper’s material life: traces of physical damage, mold, or atmospheric pollution create a unique composition within each separate piece.