Kat Moser “fell in love with photography” while watching a cousin develop pictures in a home darkroom, and although she was only 6, her heart was won. It would be more than 50 years before she acknowledged herself as an artist, but there was no hesitation in her choice of medium. Watching figures emerge onto the paper floating in emulsion had seemed magical to the child. Today, she still attests, “It’s all about the alchemy.”

There does seem to be a spirit of the ancient mystical pursuit of transformation in Moser’s photographs. Women’s gleaming bodies float effortlessly in sun-sparkled bodies of water; branches reflected in streams write runic formulae in the sky; rough buttes are recast in silver and shadow. “Ethereal, mystical, spiritual—these are just some of the words I use to describe my work,” she says in her artist statement. “All three represent the primal connections we have with Mother Earth and her female qualities. I am deeply moved by the powerful yet often unseen worlds that surround and link us to life’s profound mysteries.”

Moser’s direction is intuitive, sensitive. She is attuned to myths and fairy tales, and the wordless understanding nurtured by decades of yogic practice. At the same time, her work is honed by learning from contemporary masters and enriched by discerning study of the genre and perspectives widened by travel. She is knowledgeable and demanding of the process necessary to achieve the desired finished effect—the look of infrared film.

Infrared light exists just beyond our range of vision; cameras using this spectrum capture a view we can never see—strong colors and contrasts, milky-white foliage, and porcelain skin. With IR film no longer readily available, Moser has customized two digital cameras to produce infrared’s other-worldly images.

“I’ve always been interested in spirit photography [of the late 19th century],” she says. “I loved the romantic, Victorian, ethereal quality of infrared from the first time I saw it. The longer I use it, the more interested I am in its possibilities.”

Moser’s photographs transform the familiar into images as fragile and foreign as dreams. A title, “Mahoney Retreat” from the series “Other Worlds – Inner Life,” leaves viewers retracing their own memories of the nearby park. In “Pool of Tears,” the pattern of overhead branches echoes dark-wet strands of hair. Delineated against a broad white back, the composition is both the scene and its reflection, illustrating the series’ title, “Illusions of Water.”

One of Moser’s models, Kristi Mattini, worked at Nouvelle Eve when invited to participate. “I have a long history of ballet,” Mattini says. “Sometimes, there’s a theme, but usually I just go through the dance movements in water. It’s impossible to hold a pose, which shows how good she is at catching the moment.” In the same way that Moser isolates a fleeting image and imbues it with a sense of timelessness, she creates an artwork of an individual. “Even if I’m standing next to my photograph,” Mattini says, “people don’t realize it’s me, and I can appreciate the work without feeling self-centered.”

In Moser’s years between little girl and award-winning photographer, there was a degree in fashion merchandising, work as a buyer, and Nouvelle Eve, a high-end women’s boutique in the Old Market. For nearly 40 years she expressed her creativity in developing the store, the brand, and the clientele. The photographs she enjoyed taking liaised with the shop’s sophisticated marketing profile. In those years too, she and her husband renovated a condo and established Jackson Artworks, ahead of the curve in living the Old Market life.

“I loved retail, loved that lifestyle, but I reached a turning point,” she says. “It was very clear to me.” The time had arrived to recognize and embrace the artist that had been waiting all those years. “I believe that everything I’ve done has been foundational to my life as an artist.” In the past few years, the Mosers have sold the shop and the gallery, generating a tremendous sense of freedom, and finally time, Moser says, to “relearn how to play.”

During her long apprenticeship, she gained a thorough understanding of infrared’s characteristics, always moving toward more subtle and mysterious results. [Note: All Moser’s images are created photographically; none are Photoshopped.] Looking ahead, she would like to explore adding techniques, such as encaustic, or printing on surfaces other than paper. The knowledge she has acquired over a lifetime hasn’t dimmed the awe of her first experience. “Oh, no,” she says with a smile. “The expertise allows the magic to happen.”

Kat Moser’s work is handled exclusively by Anderson O’Brien Fine Art (aobfineart.com).