Alleys & Ruins
Contemporary Fine Art Photography
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The Alleys & Ruins series is a “masterpiece”
"Nuez scouts American cities for solitude and decrepitude [and] finds inspiration in derelict sites”
Alleys & Ruins
Long after dark, I work in bleak urban settings, seeking what others have turned away from. With the city humming in the background, I transform these spaces through elaborate lighting and long exposures, redeeming what was never meant to be seen.
My determined and intense outings often lead into dangerous neighborhoods, at times resulting in trouble. I've run from street gangs, been accosted by crazed drug addicts, and have had guns pointed at me. If the police see me lurking in a dark alley, I am often questioned and searched.
With a family history of homelessness, I feel compelled to create monuments out of these shunned spaces, to dignify what has been rejected – not by softening the grit, but by bringing light to what was already there.
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The images in the series are shot in a mostly traditional manner. The photographs are taken at night, using a 50 year old Hasselblad film camera. During the 10 to 40 minute exposures, I walk around with various (colored) lights and shine them on different parts of the scene, adding color and texture to the typically drab locations.