It's difficult to believe that Robert Asman's photographs are the result of light hitting a treated surface. They appear too physical, too bodily. Arms and legs move fluidly and seem to want to drip out of tightly packed compositions. Or else they resemble stone masses cut in shallow relief on the sheer face of photographic paper. In Mr. Asman's toned silver-gelatin prints from manipulated-paper negatives, figures strain, bend and torque, or are swept away by tidal washes of thick chemistry that envelopes them as if in an amniotic sack – awaiting birth. Mr. Asman's pictures are the colors of rust, rock and earth and often look more permanent than mere fixed light. Robert Asman has taught at the University of the Arts and participated in one-person and group exhibits at Paley Design Center at Philadelphia College of Textiles, Beaver College, Schmidt/Dean Gallery, Paul Cava Gallery, Rogues Gallery, and other Philadelphia regional venues, as well as at the Paviot Gallery in Paris, France. Mr. Asman holds a B.A. from Catholic University and an M.F.A. in Photography from the Rochester Institute of Technology and has been featured in several publications.