Christine Elfman

Christine Elfman is a Lecturer in Media Arts, Sciences and Studies at the Roy H. Park School of Communications, Ithaca College. An artist whose work explores the tension between stillness and change, clarity and ambiguity, she creates photographic images that slowly shift in meaning and form over time through processes where the subject matter acts as its own medium.

Her educational background includes an MFA from California College of the Arts and a BFA from Cornell University.

Elfman's research focuses on alternative photographic processes, particularly anthotype techniques using natural dyes from plants and lichen. Her work investigates how photographic images can embody the ephemeral nature of memory and time, with many pieces designed to fade gradually when exposed to light. She explores the historical tension in photography between the desire to fix images permanently and the reality of their inevitable transformation. Her practice bridges traditional darkroom techniques with contemporary conceptual approaches, creating works that challenge photography's association with permanence through slow, month-long exposures and fugitive materials.

Her recent exhibitions include 'dust to dust' at Houston Center for Photography (2023), 'All solid shapes dissolve in light' at EUQINOM Gallery (2022), and 'Hold Fast' at Penumbra Foundation (2021), featuring works that explore geological forms, rock formations, and the slow transformation of natural materials through lichen dye anthotypes.

• Light Work Grant in Photography
• Penumbra Foundation Residency
• Constance Saltonstall Foundation Residency
• Cape Cod National Seashore Residency

Elfman has taught photography at multiple institutions including San Francisco Art Institute, California College of the Arts, Cornell University, Bowdoin College, and Wells College. Her work has been featured in prominent publications such as BOMB Magazine, 1000words, The San Francisco Chronicle, Photograph Magazine, and Der Greif. She has worked with historic photography collections at the George Eastman Museum and Berkeley Art Museum, bringing this historical perspective to her contemporary practice.

Her artistic practice involves creating contact prints using lichen-dyed paper exposed to sunlight for weeks or months, with the resulting images continuing to fade when exhibited, embodying her exploration of time, memory, and impermanence in a direct material form.