Sunlight was our constant; the same cycling quality of light since the dawn of our existence. We call the light day, and it is one of our basic units for understanding time. For light's absence we harnessed fire to fill the void - huddled around the dancing flames our enchantment with the flicker began. Now the flicker is blue, not orange, and we are the ashes of the monitor's burning image.

The mental trick of persistence of vision is now more valuable than seeing with one's own eyes. More and more images are our validation. Stoic screens leave us more connected to unnatural, flat celebrity faces than to our next-door-neighbors.

The constant non-pattern of sunlight is replaced by the flickering ghost simulacra of the screen. We close our window blinds to block the glare of sunlight from our screens for sixty half-images per second to bombard the retina. Copies of copies of photons are transferred from wave to particle to wave to particle and bring blue ocean waves to suburban living rooms at 2 AM. From communal campfires to quiet streets of strangers watching strangers.

Flickering ghost simulacra is our new longing, the flicker is where comfort lies.



Bryant Dameron was born in White Stone, Virginia, USA in 1983. He has exhibited work internationally and across the USA in film festivals, gallery exhibtions, and television. Recent exhibitions include Videoholica 08 in Bulgaria, and 809 International New Image Art Festival in China. He graduated Virginia Tech in 2005 with a degree in Mass Media Communications, and in 2007 received a MFA degree from Virginia Commonwealth University. He currently lives and works in Richmond Virginia. In addition to film and video Bryant enjoys teaching, web-design, and turtle keeping. He maintains his own website at http://projectoctober.com