For a year, award-winning photographer Isaac Layman was holed up in his home studio in Wallingford, searching for a glimmer of paradise in the mundane—an ice cube tray, a crinkled piece of paper, even a pile of soggy tissues. “I don’t typically look at my oven for three days,” Layman said, but he would spend up to five hours photographing a single household object to create the 20+ wall-sized images now on display at the Frye in his first museum exhibit. His minimalist approach—most pieces are untitled, and some frames seem to hold blank canvases—might frustrate some, until you hear Layman’s story. Those four panels of glass? They’re actually windows from his house, which he realized he always looked through, but rarely looked at. A few were dirty—but paradise isn’t perfect. It’s full of contradictions, Layman said, and the tiniest things can turn into fantastic vistas. “You can get lost in an ice cube tray.”

View the slideshow for more images from the exhibit.

Isaac Layman: Paradise is at Frye Art Museum thru Jan 22. Daily admission to the museum is free. Join the artist for a tour of the exhibit on Jan 3, 10, & 17 at 2pm; cost is $5, free for members. If you’re a photographer, Layman is also offering a master class through the month of January.