I come to my art as a photographer and painter with formal training as an architect. For me these three pursuits ignite one passion: painted walls. Traditional painted façades offer me subject and palette from which to derive my own artwork while I, in turn, document their history, mystery, and power. Paint then - and specifically color - is my lifes calling, whether I photograph, paint, or write books about painted color customs, myths, and meanings.
I find my inspiration in ever-more remote places populated by indigenous, ritual-bound people whose architectural color springs organically from their history, geography, and faith. I consider my photographs to be documentary: the colors, subjects, and details are captured as found, using traditional equipment and materials, and printed, using traditional wet darkroom techniques.
A dozen years pursuing painted color in the lands bordering the Mediterranean Sea were followed by a decades search in the lesser-known corners of Mexico and Central America. Then in 2002, I unfolded my map of South America. My search began in Peru, and so far I have wandered no further.
Jeffrey Becom (2006)
