Welcome to the world of found photographs, where every image has a story to tell. While browsing through my collection of old studio photographs, which were once used for marriage proposals, I stumbled upon some interesting questions. What is it that people look for in a photograph that is sent as part of a marriage proposal? Is 'looking beautiful' a criteria for a lifelong relationship? How do people decide on the primary selection criteria for a proposal by simply looking at a photograph?

As I delved deeper into these questions, I felt an uncanny feeling of gaze upon these images. It seemed as though many unknown strangers were looking at the photographs, scrutinizing them, as if the person in the picture had become a product to be accepted or rejected. To respond to this gaze, I decided to re-photograph and digitally manipulate these images, removing the eyeballs and replacing them with small black bindis.

Using the 19th-century method of 'wet plate collodion' printing, I created tinted prints on acrylic sheets, addressing the aesthetic and time period of analogue studio photography. The blank space in the images is now a canvas for viewers to interact with, creating different expressions and relationships among the photographs by shifting the bindi and re-interpreting the gaze.

The resulting pieces are a unique blend of the old and new, inviting the viewer to explore the hidden stories and emotions of these found photographs. Sized at 10"X12", these tinted Wet Plate Collodion prints on Acrylic sheets and black bindi offer a rare glimpse into the past and an opportunity to redefine our relationship with old photographs. To experience the interactive image video, please visit: https://youtu.be/T-a30pbruGs