Irving works in the medium of large scaleanalog photography. Her photographs explore liminality and metageography, anthropocentrism, and the tension between natural and manmade environments. From 2007 onward, she worked on a photo series entitled NOT AN EXIT, which showcased real-world optical illusions created from narrow angles in functional hallways and doorways. These photographs have been called Escher-esque, a reference to M. C. Escher. Her photo series SHOW CAVES received significant media and academic interest for its interrogation of the ethics and impact of ecotourism, specifically the concept of government and commercially operated show caves. As a result, Irving was asked to sit on a panel for a public forum on rural economies at Virginia Tech's annual conference for Appalachian Studies Association, where the socio-economic impact of commodifying rural arts, culture, environment, and heritage to create a tourist industry in rural Appalachia was debated. In 2017, Irving's photographs from her NOT AN EXIT series were included in the exhibition Reimagining A Safe Space at NYU. The exhibition explored the notion of safe spaces, especially examples of and challenges to the concept. This series showcased real-world optical illusions created from narrow angles in functional hallways and doorways. Within the exhibition, the series was credited with providing context for the contested topic of safe spaces. In 2019, two works from NOT AN EXIT were also included in the third Every Woman Biennial in New York City curated by C. Finley, an answer to the Whitney Biennial which showcases diversity among contemporary female and queer artists. Irving has stated that her photographic practice is motivated by the wish to find relief from the "extreme internal discomfort" of living with body dysmorphic disorder. Irving's images are made with a 4x5 view camera and are presented as large scale photographic prints.
Awards and nominations
In 2015 her photo series SHOW CAVES was a finalist in both the Architecture and Landscape categories for the Felix Schoeller Photo Award in Osnabrück, Germany. In 2016, she was a nominee for the United States Artists Fellowship. In 2019, her project NOT AN EXIT was awarded a gold medal at the Prix de la Photographie Paris in the Fine Arts/Architecture category. while her project PLANTS IN EXILE was awarded gold in the Nature/Trees category. In 2019, an image from PLANTS IN EXILE was awarded third place in an international photography competition held by the New York Center for Photographic Arts.
Projects
• NOT AN EXIT, 2007 - ongoing. A series of seemingly impenetrable hallways and doorways presented the size of doors. • SHOW CAVES, 2009 - ongoing. A series of long exposure images that explore the anthropocentric tendencies of modern tourism seen in domestic and international show caves. • CORNERED, 2016 - 2018. A series of optical illusions found in the corners of rooms. • PLANTS IN EXILE, 2014 - ongoing. A series of long exposure images at night that investigate the overlap of urban planning and plant life. • WINDOWS, 2006 - 2019. A series of long exposure images during the day of occluded windows. • NIGHT LIGHTS, 2015 - 2017. A series of long exposure images ranging from 1 to 8 hours documenting ambient light pollution in Hong Kong, LA, New York and India.
