Curious moments of visual interest arise spontaneously within the built and natural world. Smolthoughts is an ongoing photo series of the Formalist art motifs that punctuate the ordinary world.

Each photograph consists of two key components. First, it captures moments that are too coincidental, easily overlooked and possess a novel humour. Second, the subject must possess compelling visual qualities that evoke elements of Formalism (form, shape, space, pattern, repetition, texture, and colour). The object is then transformed using compositional elements. Framing and perspective add an aura bringing it away from the mundane and towards an art object.

The ongoing nature of this series reveals technology's advancements and limitations. While mobile cameras have improved in quality and versatility, undermining their intended settings creates a flat, painterly aesthetic. Certain limitations of the camera have also been revealed. Notably, the majesty of nature can't be reproduced; mountains, the moon, sunshine, and rainbows all fall limp upon the tiny sensor.

Art is often an effort to mimic the ordinary world. This relationship is reflexive; the ordinary world also mimics art. Formalism not only offers a method to look at art but also a way to perceive the world. The world rinses the boundaries of art and intention.