Radoslav Daskalov: Systematic Desensitisation | Portfolio
Systematic Desensitisation is a project exploring my continual combat with an anxiety and panic disorder. It is named after a technique employed in cognitive behavioural therapy, where the subject is repeatedly exposed to the same stimuli in order to get used to and build a new reaction to them. I have adopted this method and day after day face my fears of leaving my house and interacting with other people.
I pose for a self portrait in front of a large format camera before going out. Each photograph depicts seven days of struggle through the use of multiple exposure. The images are printed on paper imported from my homeland, Bulgaria, whose flawed surface offers a true representation of my inner world. This effect was not achieved through manipulation on part of the artist, but is the result of improper storage for the past several decades, with submission to damp and mould. Therefore each image has a unique quality to it, that cannot be reproduced.