My photos intend to graphically represent my inner visual world as a blind person.

I use film as a canvas to depict what my remaining senses bring to my mind’s eye.  I incorporate phantom imaging from the effects of my eye disease and my past memory. Graphic representations of the enhanced senses felt by the blind find a place in my work. The results often have a mixture of the real and surreal. I became legally blind about twenty years ago. I have been categorized as totally blind by doctors for about four or five years. I find the challenge of photography an enjoyable test of my creativity.

I still view the world visually. But now I have to use my remaining senses and memory to formulate an inner vision in my mind’s eye. Losing my eyesight has not diminished the clarity of my internal vision. I have worked hard to sharpen my other senses and learn what objects sound like. These efforts have sharpened my internal vision. This process is similar to a baby learning to see. A baby has to learn to comprehend vision. I am learning to comprehend sound. I actively research sounds and how sound interacts with objects to be able to make better photos. Sound, touch, and memory are events in the photographic process that result in a visual product. I enjoy the event. The graphic product I view as conceptual art that I can't see.

                                                                                                              --Pete Eckert