Photoshop has enabled the impossible to happen in photographs. Explore how artists have pushed the boundaries between reality and the impossible. In my essay I am exploring how artists have made narratives that push the boundaries between reality and the impossible within their work. I will be looking at three artists who create narrative work that is inconceivable without the use of editing software such as Photoshop. I will also be looking at the different techniques used to create their artwork. The reason I’m looking at this title for my essay is because it links to my own practical work as I am making narratives that in reality is impossible to do. The first artist I will be looking at is Kyle Thompson. Thompson makes narratives that often feature him in unusual situations, making unusual self-portraits. He uses Photoshop to photo manipulate himself in different settings and different scenarios, some include him floating in the air. The second artist that I will be looking at is Daniel Barreto. Barreto creates his narratives by making GIFS on Photoshop of trees that have different windows that flicker in the night, which suggests that what you are seeing is real. Barreto uses Photoshop to make separate layers of the light going on and off so when turning it into a GIF it looks as if it flickers. My final artist that I will look at is Fabienne Rivory. Rivory combines both photography and paintings, to create minimalistic narratives, that feel very dreamy and atmospheric, and allowing the images to ‘become more universally evocative and can remain anybody a place, a memory, an emotion’ –Fabienne Rivory from her website. I think what Rivory means by this is that her work can be universally relatable. Everyone who looks at her work can instantly feel nostalgic about a place be it a childhood memory or somewhere they went to last year, It creates a memory and a feeling of happiness of that time. Rivory uses Photoshop to cut out different sections of her photographs and then arranges them with her paintings to create a new image, for example she has turned some rockery and a field into a cliff. Although it’s clear that her imagery isn’t real, it does convince you into seeing it in a new way. I chose to look at these three artists because they all use different techniques in Photoshop, but they all result by having unique narratives that are impossible to achieve without the use of Photoshop. This relates to my project as I am creating narratives that are made from using Photoshop to edit my photographs to create something that is impossible in reality. In my essay I was to explore how artists have pushed the boundaries in their work from the real to the impossible. Kyle Thompson, born in Illinois in 1992, is based around Chicago and travels, finding new and unusual places to take photographs. Thompson began taking photographs at nineteen years of age, when he found an interest in abandoned buildings. Thompson mainly takes self-portraits that are unusual and surreal, often in abandon buildings and forests. Thompson is a self-taught photographer. The reason I chose Thompson was because he creates his work using Photoshop to push the boundaries. Kyle Thompson creates his narratives by using a
combination of different photographs, and manipulating them to create visually striking photographs that make you question the reason behind them.
This is one of Kyle Thompson’s work, taken in 2012. The movement associated with Kyle Thompson is ‘surrealism’ and I think that this piece and the rest of his work connects well with this movement. Surrealism began in the 1920’s and the aim of this movement was to “resolve the previously contradictory conditions of dream and reality”. Surrealism is known for its unusual and unbelievable art and I think that Kyle Thompson links well to this movement, as all his work is very dreamlike and absurd. Petapixel said “The brunt of Thompson’s work consists of beautiful, striking and surreal self-portraits in which Thompson is bending reality to his will.” I feel this quote describes Kyle Thompson well, as I think that his work looks very real because he uses genuine images of places and things, and then photo manipulates them all together to create an impossible scenario.
In this image, Kyle Thompson depicts an angel that looks like it has possibly died or is dying. The image is imaginary, but is made to look as realistic as possible. This image relates to the narrative because there’s a story within the piece and it sparks a lot of questions, such as: Why is he floating?, Is he an angel?, Is the fabric meant to represent wings?, Where is he?, Why can’t we see his face?, Is he sad, or possibly dead?, Has he been hurt?, Is he controlling the flying?. Kyle’s story-like Thompsons images instantly create a story in the viewer’s mind. The use of the warm earthy colours helps creates a moving and powerful image because they bring a sense of warmth and happiness, as often people have strong happy memories from the summer.. The message that Kyle Thompson is trying to convey through this image is quite hard to decipher, but I think he’s trying to say that something or someone as perfect as an angel can still be damaged and broken. This shows how artists have pushed the boundaries of reality to impossible, because without Photoshop Kyle Thompson wouldn’t be able to create an image such as this one, and to create a story. The background of this piece shows a forest that looks like the middle of nowhere, and in the foreground Kyle Thompson is seen floating, this composition makes Kyle Thompson the main focus of the image, and I think the reason for this is that it makes the viewer first notice him and question why he is there and what he is and then they notice where he is and then begins to question the whole image. I think the story that is being told is that Kyle Thompson is becoming an angel and he is dying from either something physical such as a fight or maybe something mentally such as he feels broken down etc. and Kyle is in the middle of nowhere beginning to rise as the angel.
I think that Kyle Thompsons work is realistic, as it has been made well using Photoshop, although his work shows the impossible, it does trick the viewer’s mind to believing in it. I think the choice of colour that Thompson has used in his work, is successful because he uses very warm and earthy colours, which makes his work not only visually striking but also gives the images a very harmonious feel to them. The use of smoke in his pictures again further pushes the atmospheric feel. Thompsons work feels dream-like and mythical, so I think he was aiming to suggest that what we’re seeing isn’t real and possibly imagined, but he has made his work to a high level that also makes the viewer feel that it could be real.
After exploring Kyle Thompson, I’ve learnt how he pushes boundaries in his work by using Photoshop to make something impossible in reality, and I feel that Photoshop has helped with creating his work, as without the software Thompson wouldn’t be able to get the results that he has. Daniel Barreto is a 22 year old freelance artist based in Boston. Barreto has a variety of work that ranges from photographic based to art based. All his work has a story behind it, Similarly to Kyle Thompson, all his work makes you question what’s happening. The work that I’m most interested in is his photo manipulations that bring houses and windows into trees, creating the idea of a fantasy world that lives amongst the trees. I think that these pieces of work are unusual, I think that they are good narratives, creating a realistic looking fantasy world. I also like how Barreto has created GIFs rather than just images, as this makes the idea of homes inside the trees more real.
http://dbarreto.com/post/45840536337/woodhouses - The GIF versions. This piece was made by Daniel Barreto, it is a GIF of a photograph of a forest and you can see windows within the trees flicker. This piece was made quite recently, by using Photoshop. Barreto has a wide range of different art work, and these GIFs are just one project amongst many.
Other work by Daniel Barreto:
I think the movement that Daniel Barreto is associated with is surrealism, akin to Kyle Thompson, because his work consists of quite unusual and absurd scenarios. In an interview Daniel Barreto said “I grew up with technology and I have always been a self-starter when it comes to learning software. It intrigues me and I appreciate it as a tool and as an art form. I have heard people call digitallyrendered art “fake”; this is the same problem early photographers had, though the problem of photography seems to have been largely resolved. It is art. People often don’t understand the process”. I agree with what Daniel Barreto is saying as I feel this quote points out how Photoshop is a key tool for artists and photographs, and that it isn’t a form of cheating and making something fake, but instead creating art that before Photoshop, would never have been able to be created. However on the other hand Photoshop does make fake art work that doesn’t exist in the real world as it allows artists to create pieces that are realistic yet not real. In The GIF of the trees, I feel Daniel Barreto is depicting a fantasy place, where some form of living creatures live in trees. This art work is imaginary, but it is made in a way that makes the viewer’s feel that it could be real because Barreto has made it into a GIF. A GIF is way that creates a moving image either from a
video or from photographs and your own artwork. Daniel Barreto has used a GIF in his advantages and has made what looks like a video. Something that is much harder to photo manipulate as it’s constantly moves so tricks his audience to thinking this is real. This relates to the narrative because it makes the viewer think about the image and questions what they can see and what is happening. Questions such as: Where is this? Who are in the trees?, what are they doing there?. I don’t think Daniel Barreto is trying to convey a message though this art, but he is creating a fantasy story that without Photoshop he wouldn’t be able to do. I think the story that is being told is that there is a fantasy world where there’s living creates that live in our trees. Barreto made a collection of these pieces, which creates even further the feel of this fantasy world.
This shows how artists have pushed the boundaries between realities because with Photoshop Barreto has been able to create a fantasy story by using genuine photographs of trees and windows. Compared to Kyle Thompson they have both
used Photoshop to create a story, that without Photoshop, would have been very hard and if not impossible. The composition with Daniel Barretos work is quite unusual because there isn’t anything in the foreground that have the main focus, but instead it’s in the middle ground where the main focus is because that’s where Barreto have placed the windows on the trees. Barreto has also placed windows on the trees in the background, this gives a sense of depth of field which makes the image look realistic because it doesn’t look false, this helps make the image look more believable. I think that Daniel Barreto’s work is realistic because he has successfully used depth of field, and by having it as a GIF it tricks the viewer to believing it. I think compared to Kyle Thompson they have both got similarities when making their work, and they have both been able to achieve realistic work. I do however think that they have gone with different concepts, as Kyle Thompson went for making his work look believable by using himself as the subject matter and although what is happening may be impossible its very convincing, however Daniel Barreto decided to make pieces that makes the audience create the story as we cant see what or who lives in this place. Although Barreto has used genuine photographs, the viewer instantly knows that it’s not real, even though it’s very convincing. I think the mood that Daniel Barreto is trying to suggest is that it is quite daydreamed and imagined. The colours used are all quite dark which suggests it’s quite a hidden place and that maybe they only come out at night. The colours also suggests a cold place because of the white snow and sky. I think the colour is important to show the mood because it makes this piece of work feel very quiet and hidden which emphasizes the fantasy feel. After exploring Daniel Barreto, I have discovered how he also pushes boundaries by the use of Photoshop, and how both he and Kyle Thompson are quite similar with their approach to creating their work, but they do have differences when it comes to making work that pushes the boundaries of reality, and is physically impossible. Fabienne Rivory is an artist based in Paris, who combines photographs of French landscapes and her painting to create her images, “These are dreamed images trying to recreate a momentary emotion that anyone can feel in front of nature's beauty”. Rivory has been making this style of work since 2007 and has named her project ‘Labokoff’, which all feature a mixture of texture or paining and photographs. The work I’m looking at is Fabiennes most recent work named ‘Mirror’ which features a combination of black and white photographs that are mirrored and water colour or ink. This specific piece that I am looking at is quite typical of Fabienne Rivorys work, apart from her ‘mirror’ collection, she also has other pieces of work that are all made in a similar style.
Other Pieces from the ‘Mirror’ collection:
Some more work by Fabienne Rivory since 2007:
Similarly to Kyle Thompson and Daniel Barreto, the movement that Fabienne Rivory is associated with is Surrealism, she connects to this movement well as she manipulates photos and art to create unreal images, that are although nonexistent very meaningful, expressive and emotional. “(Fabienne Rivory) explores the interaction between photography and painting, real and imaginary world, memories and reality.” – Fabienne Rivory. This quote helps define Rivorys work, as is explains how her work, although very unusual, is towards the viewer and how its pushes the boundaries between reality to create a dream-like feeling, that the viewer can connect to. The piece of work that I’m looking at by Fabienne Rivory, is depicting a memory that viewer may have, creating an emotional connection to the piece. Compared to Kyle Thompson and Daniel Barreto, Fabienne Rivory has purposely made her work look fake, whereas both Thompson and Barreto have tried to trick the viewer into convincing them to believe in what they are seeing. Thompson and Barreto have both tried to create something that looks naturally real and is trying to make their work look like they haven’t used Photoshop. Fabienne Rivory however makes her work into a collage look, which firstly makes the viewer know that she has used Photoshop to make the piece, but also makes her work have a sense of a daydream feel to it, that its possible been imagined. This connects to the viewer because it has a personal feel to it. I think there is a message that is being portrayed throughout this piece of work, the piece has a sense of freedom a carefree to it because of the child running with his arms open, and brings feelings of childhood and the carefree feeling we had. The paint further pushes this idea because it looks like it’s coming from the child, making it look like all the happiness from the child is leaking out. This image relates to the narrative as it makes the viewer instantly think about the story behind it, and more importantly the memory that is reminds the viewer of.
The main focus point is of the child, I think Fabienne Rivory has made the viewer instantly connect to the child and feel the childlike freedom that this boy has. We then notice the clouds in the background, I think the reason for this is to bring the feeling of day dreaming to the image, which give it quite a harmonious feel. The work by Fabienne Rivory isn’t made to be realistic, as it’s very clear it’s been made by using Photoshop. Instead Rivory has abstracted the photograph, by including paint and other photographs, and has layered each piece together to create an atmospheric image. I think the texture of the paint has been carefully chosen, to help emphasize the dream-like feel, to complement the clouds and the black and white photographs. The paint has been made quite roughly to make it look like the paint had just dropped onto the work. This gives the work an imperfect feel and something quite hazy, making it feel like a distant memory that maybe can’t be fully remembered. I think Fabienne Rivory was aiming to suggest a dream-like feel to her work, and that it’s a memory to the viewer. I think that Rivorys aim has been achieved well, as I see her work in that way, and feel it makes me think of a memory or feeling that I have. I think the colour used in this piece and the rest of her work is highly important because it helps give the dream-like feel. The use of black and white for the photographs again further pushes the dream-like feeling. The colour that is injected into the piece by the paint has the feel of freedom and happiness and I think enhances the image. After exploring Fabienne Rivory, I have learnt the reason for her to use Photoshop to create her art, and how compared to Kyle Thompson and Daniel Barreto, she has very different ideas for using Photoshop to create her work, as she uses it to create very unusual work, compared to Thompson and Rivory who use it to trick the viewers to believe the impossible. In conclusion, I have explored how artists use Photoshop to create work that pushes boundaries from reality to the impossible. I have learnt that Photoshop is an important tool for many artists to help better enhance their work to a higher quality. I have also found out how without Photoshop many artists wouldn’t be able to create the work that they have, for instance without Photoshop, Kyle Thompson wouldn’t have been able to create the pieces that he has as he solely relies on Photoshop to make his work. Artist have different way of using Photoshop, as some use it to make work that looks natural that tricks the viewer to believe in the impossible, but also there are artists who use it to create work that is clear that it’s been digitally made, but can still have a huge result in making visually striking work. I think that Photoshop is a huge milestone when it comes to art, that enables artists and photographers to make art that before would have been impossible to do. In the case of Kyle Thompson, Daniel Barreto and Fabienne Rivory, without Photoshop they would not be able to create they’re art that we can see today. Artists such as Daniel Barreto are able to create the impossible of making a fantasy world with his own imagery, being able to make things move and change. For artists such as Kyle Thompson and Fabienne Rivory Photoshop enables them to create powerful and moving imagery that creates a story and deep meaning for the audience. I feel I have now come to the
understanding of how Photoshop pushes the boundaries of reality to the impossible and why its such a crucial tool for many artists.
Bibliography: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surrealism http://dbarreto.com/post/45840536337/woodhouses http://dbarreto.com/ http://www.kylethompsonphotography.com/ http://cargocollective.com/labokoff/Info http://installationmag.com/david-barreto-urban-density/