A couple more examples…in a break from using images of Dorset, the background of the second image is Croydon Road Recreation Ground in Beckenham (where David Bowie performed at the Beckenham Arts Lab Growth Summer Festival in 1969).
Portraits! Paint! Digital constructs and Art criticism!
6 Comments
Leave a Reply
Top Posts & Pages
The Future Is Papier Mâché 
Ah, some of the rare attempts at digital fine art I’ve seen in recent years. Whole lot of collage and design elements going on here, but also comes out of Rauschenberg, and even David Salle. There’s a classic aesthetic sensibility. Both images are interesting, but I’m personally more drawn to the landscape study with the big yellow circle. I’ve done some things perhaps in the same vast arena in terms of handling the medium — which here means using Photoshop, layers, masks, and so on — and thus I find myself wanting to nudge this or that element experimentally using arrow keys.
It’s really nice to see someone attempting serious digital art, and I look forward to seeing how this develops. There’s something going on here with going out with a camera, taking shots of things like plastic bags, coming back and cutting them out, arranging them, and so on, and then going out and doing it again that seems a very rich avenue to explore, especially as the dual processes potentially enrich and influence each other. I’m curious about how subject and meaning are integrating here. On one level pure design can override any and all content, or they could be used to complement each other. Here I’m seeing the evident process itself as a significant part of the meaning. It seems to matter that you take these pics yourself, and in your local environment.
They also seem like a lot of fun, if the digital editing doesn’t get too tedious (though even that can be pleasant enough). Lastly, despite what I believe is a prevalent prejudice against digital work, there’s so much rich possibility here, and I love that it gets you both out of the house and sitting in front of a computer.
Thanks so much Eric! Much appreciated.
I’m glad they give you the urge to tweak!
Yes, the images are all mine – partly because I can’t get on with the looseness and wooliness of appropriation – if I’ve taken the shot I have more control over (re) presentation of an object. And it’s good to walk around trying to find stuff to bend to my will! Because of the way I make these, the distance between the lens and an object on the ground is often not far off my height – so I think of them as being quite close and on a human scale. If I could get smells into the images I would.
The editing is fun – I don’t know about you, but this is the part of the process where I’m most likely to surprise myself – the foundations of the compositions quite often come about by chance.
I think you’re right about the way digital art is viewed as a form, and a lot of work goes ignored because there’s a tendency for people to want technologically produced art to be technologically innovative. Like fins on cars – not enough fins on the art!
Hey Richard, I hardly ever visit this space anymore but saw your post of twitter. I love this landscape!
Hi Deanne, me too! Also really scaled back my use of Twitter (too much Brexit talk is bad for my health 🙂 ). Thanks so much – still painting but on a much smaller scale…(storage problems).
The two pieces are really fantastic, Richard.
Thanks so much Rabirius! Really appreciate your comment! Hope all’s well with you.