Went out upon Circumference—
Beyond the Dip of Bell—
from poem 378
Over the course of one year, I repeatedly photographed Emily Dickinson’s bedroom, focusing on the corner near her desk. For much of Dickinson’s life she chose to remain secluded in her room, rarely leaving or seeing visitors. By photographing this potent corner, I am not trying to replicate what Dickinson might have seen, but rather trying to convey a space that invited a deep concentration. This small corner led to expansive poetry. The room has since been renovated and this wallpaper removed, but the light in the corner remains the same.
I called the project “Circumference,” because it was a concept and word Dickinson relied on frequently in her writings; she used the word to evoke the boundary between the visible and invisible, the known and unknown.