Strange Beauty VII Body Art

Strange Beauty VII

BODY ART

Faceless Portraits By

Jay Gard

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Strange Beauty Photo Art by Jay Gard Strange Beauty: Portraits Strange Beauty II: Royalty & Celebrity Strange Beauty 3: Aquatics Strange Beauty Four: Icons - Sacred Images Strange Beauty Four: Icons 2 - Saint Sebastian Strange Beauty Four: Icons 3 - Abstract Essentialist Bible Strange Beauty Four: Icons 4 – Classical Mythology Strange Beauty 5: Youth (3 volumes) Strange Beauty Six: Homage Strange Beauty VII: Body Art

Cover Image: Toes with Stars II (detail) Back Cover Image: Leg and Toes with Green and Blue Bubbles

© Published exclusively on ISSUU 2018

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Contents Foreword | page 5 People | page 8 Bodies | page 44 Body Parts | page 88

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Foreword There has been something of a fashion for photographers to offer portraits without faces, or even more radically portraits without people. There are various ways of interpreting these terms; ‘without a face’ can mean a photo of someone from behind, a photo with the face obscured by a hat, a veil or an object or by low lighting or distance, or a picture of their body or parts thereof with the head excluded. A portrait without a person usually refers to an image of items associated with a person or which encapsulate their character. An alternative approach to both these categories is to apply a distortion technique to a portrait or photo in such a way that the face or even the whole person disappears into an unrecognisable abstraction or semi-abstraction. The images in this collection display a range of techniques using a range of originals.

The whole concept of abstract essentialism can be criticised on the basis that it results in images which are often neither abstract nor essential, that it is parasitic on the work of others and that it requires no technical skill or artistic ability. In the case of some landscape images which have been produced by other photo artists this seems to be an unfair criticism as the intent to produce images that convey a sense of time and place using original photos is successfully achieved and in some cases, though admittedly not all, the images are wholly abstract. The criticism is more valid in the case of my specialism, portrait art. Some of the images used have been ‘poached’, but artists have always borrowed from each other, and many are clearly still figurative. However, even in these cases the pleasure of the visual effect is to a very large degree due to the patterns of vibrant colour created by the distortion. Besides, there has never been a clear boundary between the abstract and the representational. More serious is the argument that the images do not capture the ‘essence’ of the person. I disagree – at least I don’t wholly accept the claim. I would suggest that the images do capture something implicit in the originals.

But decide for yourself. And why does art have to be difficult? Art as a means of expression should be inclusive, open to all to create as well as to appreciate. In the end if images are aesthetically pleasing what does it matter whether there is a compelling intellectual justification!

Jay Gard January 2018

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People

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Portrait in Pink and Green

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Portrait in Violet and White

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Portrait of a Man in a Tie

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Portrait in Pink, Yellow and Green

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Portrait in Orange

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Portrait in Pink

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Portrait in Red, Orange and Pink

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Portrait in Black

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Portrait in Shades of Orange

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Portrait in Pale Yellow

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Portraits in Six Colours

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Portrait in Three Colours

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Portrait in Pink and White

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Portrait in Pink and White II

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Portrait in Pink and White III

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Portrait in Pink and Grey I

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Portrait in Pink and Grey II

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Portrait in Pink and Grey III

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Portrait in a Light Blue Shirt

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Portrait in Light Green and Pink

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Portrait in White, Blue and Red I

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Portrait in White, Blue and Red II

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Portrait in Greyscale

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Portrait in Salmon Green and Blue

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Portrait in White and Dark Green

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Portrait in Shades of Beige

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Portrait in Shades of Blue and Grey

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Portrait in Shades of Blue and Grey II

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Portrait in Black and Beige II

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Portrait in Yellow and Green

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Portrait in Brown, Grey and Pink

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Portrait with Flash

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Portrait in Dark Brown

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Portrait in White and Grey I

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Portrait in White and Grey II

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Body with a Jacket 1

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Body with a Jacket 2

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Body with a Jacket 3

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Body with a Jacket 4

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Body in Pinks and Greys

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Body in Salmon and Green

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Body in Beige and Grey

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Body in Deep Pink and Green

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Body in Yellow, Blue and Pink

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Body in Pink and Blue

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Body in Pink and Blue (distorted)

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Body in Pink and Brown

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Body in Pink and Salmon

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Body in Salmon

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Body in Grey-Green

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Bodies in Pink in Diamond Frames

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Bodies in Pink and Green in Diamond Frames

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Body in Pink and Green I

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Body in Pink and Green II

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Body in Yellow

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Four Bodies in Four Colours

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Four Bodies in Two Colours

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Body with Nipple and Bubbles

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Body in Black and Grey with Bubbles 1

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Body in Black and Grey with Bubbles 2

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Body in Black and Grey with Bubbles 3

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Body in Orange with Ripples

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Body with Elongated Bubbles

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Body in Orange, Purple and Grey I

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Body in Orange, Purple and Grey II

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Body with Bubbles and Stars

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Body in Beige

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Body in Purple

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Body in Salmon and Orange

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Body in Pink, Yellow and Green

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Body as Fire

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Body in Black and White

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Body with Pink Stars

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Body with Yellow and Pink Bubbles

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Body in Shades of Brown

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Body in Orange and Green

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Body in Blue Grey with Bubbles

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Body with Blue and Green Bubbles

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Eye I

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Eye II

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Hands

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Arms and Hands in Shades of Pink

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Interlocking Hands I

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Interlocking Hands II

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Nipple with Bubbles

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Nipple in a Wooden Frame

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Nipples in Red and Orange

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Naval in a Frame

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Legs – Three Images

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Legs in Diamods

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A Pair of Legs

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Legs (Blurred)

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Legs

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Legs with Blue Stars

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Legs with Ripples and Stars

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Legs after Mondrian

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Leg with Mist and Yellow Stars

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Arm and Leg with bubbles and Stars

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Leg with Ripple, Bubbles and Stars

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Leg with Ripples and Coloured Bubbles

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Legs with Green Bubbles

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Knees with Bubbles

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Legs with Green Bubbles

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Leg and Toes with Green and Blue Bubbles

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Toes with Stars I

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Toes with Stars II

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Toes and Knee with Bubbles

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Feet with Yellow Stars

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Foot in Mauve with Ripples and Bubbles

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Strange Beauty VII

BODY ART

Stunning Portraits without Faces Jay Gard is one of the most exciting new photo artists. His abstract essentialist work Strange Beauty is already being acclaimed on Deviant Art and is now available in a series of ebooks on issuu.

This collection offers a range of different styles of semi-abstraction with particularly vibrant colours and stunning results. $24.99

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