Scribble #23

While other photographers normally expose their film for a fraction of a second, David Lebe keeps his shutter open for a longer duration.  During this time, he whields a flashlight like a crayon, "scribbling" patterns in the air of the darkened studio.  These delicate and ephemeral bouquets of light are captured by the film.  Only after the negative is developed is Lebe able to see the results of his improvisational performance.

Lebe’s Scribble series is dedicated to his many friends who have succumbed during the AIDS epidemic.  The flower vases double as funerary urns, symbolizing our mortal existence.  The incandescent posies embody the life-affirming spirit that resides in us all.  In this way, David Lebe has given the traditional term "still life" a poignant spiritual meaning.