“I take the photographs and A.J. adds the magic. It’s something this father and son do together,”–Mike Patnode
A.J. was born severely handicapped, much like a quadriplegic on December 17, 1998. Our family’s goal has always been to help A.J. use his mind, even though he has minimal use of his body.
AJ Patnode
Our photographic art is a kinetic motion study from the results of interacting with A.J. and his toys.
A.J. likes to watch lights and movement. One of the few things he can do for himself is to operate a switch that sets in motion lights and various shiny, colorful streamers and toys that swirl above his bed.
One day I took a picture of A.J. with his toys flying out from the big mobile near his bed like swings on a carnival ride. I liked the way the swirling objects and colors looked in the photo.
I wanted to study the motion more and photograph the whirling objects in an artful way, I wanted my son A.J. to be a part of it. After all, he’s the one who inspires me. When A.J. and I work together on our motion artwork, A.J. starts his streamers and objects twirling, I take the photographs.
Activating a tiny switch might not seem like much to some, but it’s all A.J. can do. He controls the direction the mobile will spin, as well as when it starts and stops. The shutter speeds are long, and sometimes, I move the camera and other times I hold it still.
I begin our creation with a Nikon digital camera. Then I use my computer with Photoshop to alter the images into what I feel might be an artistic way. Working with Photoshop, I find the best parts from several images and combine them into the final composite photograph. I consider the finished work to be fine art. The computer is just the vehicle that helps my expressions grow.
I take the photographs and A.J. adds the magic. It’s something this father and son do together. After I’ve taken a few shots, I show him the photos in the back of the camera. When the images are completed, I show him from a laptop. He just looks. He can’t tell me whether or not he likes the images, but he’s always ready to work with me again.
It offers me my only glance into A.J.’s secret world. We’ve built a large collection of images and I hope the motion and color move you as much as they do me.
A.J. inspires me to work harder to understand my life in the areas of art, photography, people, spirituality, and so much more. He truly sets my mind in motion and helps me find the beauty in everyday things.
The images in this abstract show are high definition, photographic prints on brushed aluminum; a new art medium for preserving photos by infusing dyes directly into specially coated aluminum sheets. The image stability of MetalPrints is 2 to 4 times the image stability of traditional silver based photographic papers.
See more of Mike’s inspiring photography at First Thursday on August 7, 5:30 – 7:30 pm, with music by Dave Mongeau. The other featured artists include Earlene Holmstrom (pastel) and Kit Metlen (Indian inspired art).
Learn more about A.J.
- A.J. Patnode – A Journey of Hope (documentary)
- A.J.’s toys (documentary)
- A.J.’s blog
- Michael’s Photography
