The stark contrast between the conservative South & bohemian spirit of art school in Europe led to a unique experience when I first left home to spend a semester abroad in Italy. There on the intimate hillside town of Cortona, I lived with five dozen students in a converted 500-year-old Tuscan convent. Inspired by my previous body of work ("Secrets - Emory Edition"), I created an edition in Cortona. It would serve as a photographic means for me to explore a distinct experience while living overseas. I chose the nude as a form of classical appreciation -- an attempt to convey awe for the refine aesthetic traditions of antiquity. The project inspired subjects to embrace this ancient custom by exhibiting the beauty of being. The secrets component offered a physical vs internal theme. Withdrawing all material & displaying only our most raw being, the project exemplified a humanistic philosophy: we preserve the most concealed thoughts, an inherent ability that lies beyond the corporeal realm. These portraits are not only meant to appreciate the anatomy of the human form, but to construct an awareness that cherishes the mind, body, & soul.

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