My Art Essay - Draft

 

Artist Essay

Tom Chambers’ artwork, namely the art piece’s Spring’s Landfall and Maritime Sentry, uses digital technologies such as digital photography and Photoshop, to enhance the visual language and create dreamlike images that appear realistic yet are surreal. According to the dictionary, Surrealism is the irrational juxtaposition of images that release the creative potential of the unconscious mind. The piece Maritime Sentry, speaks of segregation and control. The art piece Spring’s landfall, shows the mixing of reality and fantasy. Tom Chambers’ use of technology, very effectively, enhances the visual language. His images capture a dreamlike state through the use of digital photography and media.

Tom Chambers’ meaning is communicated through his use of visual language, digital photography and media. The art work, Spring’s Landfall, has a strong sense of juxtaposition. It is seen in the flowers in the boat compared to the dry landscape, the boat on land instead of water and the blindfold she wears. The girl rowing blindfolded suggests she is oblivious to the world around her and going blindly through life. Also, the contrasting colours enhance the juxtaposition in this piece, the girl’s bright dress and colourful flowers - the dull colours in the field and sky. The focal point is obvious through use of strong tonal contrast and use of space. There is movement in this piece mainly seen at the oars. There is also a sense of balance in the piece. There is strong juxtaposition through the mix of reality and fantasy. The blindfolded girl, the rowing boat and bright flowers are out of place, which suggests she is in her own fantasy world, whereas the landscape is the harshness of reality around her. She refuses to accept reality but instead lives in her own beautiful world away from others (hence rowing through a field in comparison to water). Yet she is anchored to the ground and at a stand still, trying to row will not get her anywhere. Also, a storm is approaching and she is about to find herself in trouble. This art piece is of a girl at a standstill in her life, as she will not accept reality but contents to be in her own beautiful world. Chamber’s use of digital technologies, such as Photoshop, enhances the overall appearance, most importantly; it enhances the realism of the piece.

The art piece, Maritime Sentry, uses visual language, digital photography and media to communicate meaning. The colours in the art work, Maritime Sentry, are complementary. The mood is cold as the colours are mostly cool colours, the light blue water and light sky. The horse's dark, black colouring presents a strong contrast to the neutral colour scheme. Black horses usually represent power, strength and a quality of viciousness. The fact that the horse is not bridled suggests that it has freedom, yet it is letting the girl ride it so it must be giving her some dominion over itself. This work is balanced and space creates depth in the background of the sea. There is movement in the water by the way it ripples as the horse moves through the water. The focal point of the piece is the both the horse and the girl as the contrast between the white and black draws the viewers attention to both. Chambers is trying to communicate a connection between the dominance humans have over animals, particularly the Marwari horse as they are near extinction. The title Maritime Sentry suggests the girl controls the water or sea. This piece is cold and confronting. There is a connection between the horse and the girl and the power she is given when riding the horse. The girls are all the same, equal yet the power she has sets them apart. This segregation gives meaning to the piece. She is equal to the other girls as she was just previously swimming in the water as well. Now that she rides the horse she has power over the others and can easily use it against them. Chambers’ uses Photoshop to enhance the colouring and contrast in this piece. This improvement of the art works visual language affects the meaning of the piece as the colouring and contrast is a large part of this. Tom Chambers, when writing about his artwork, said ‘With digital photography I desire to move beyond documentation of the present, and rather seek to merge reality and dreams in musing about possibilities of the future.’ (Chambers, 2010). The theme that is strongly communicated in his artwork is the dreamlike awareness that he captures so well. Tom Chambers meaning for both Spring’s Landfall and Maritime Sentry is communicated through both his use of digital technologies and visual language.

In Tom Chamber’s artwork the role of surrealism is clear in Spring’s Landfall. However, his piece Maritime Sentry does not have such a strong aspect of surrealism. Although, there is an aspect of surrealism in this art piece. Spring’s Landfall relies on its surreal qualities and juxtaposition to create an out of place piece that has deep meaning to it. This role of surrealism is present in many of Tom Chamber’s artworks in communicating a blur of reality and fantasy. In relation to his artwork, Spring’s Landfall, Chambers writes of the meaning he communicates, ‘…these photomontages explore a place where unexpected circumstances collide’ (Chambers, 2010).  This description he gives of his artwork captures the definition of surrealism, a collision of unexpected images. However, Tom Chambers is not the first artist to create surrealistic artwork. Surrealism was a movement launched in 1924 that grew out of symbolism and Dadaism. André Breton, the poet and critic who published “The Surrealist Manifesto” in 1924, says Surrealism was ‘a means of reuniting conscious and unconscious realms of experience so completely, that the world of dream and fantasy would be joined to the everyday rational world in an absolute reality, a surreality.’ (Comprehensive History of all things Surrealist). This combination of the dream world being connected to reality is what Chambers has communicated through his artwork. ‘…this type of artwork is a genre commonly known as magic realism.’ (Brooks, 2010). Although Maritime Sentry does not have a strong aspect of surrealism it does have a dreamlike aspect. In relation to Maritime Sentry, ‘In these photomontages I present dreamlike images…’ (Chambers, 2010).  He uses an aspect of surrealism in this piece; therefore this art piece is not absent from Surrealism. Tom Chambers artwork, Maritime Sentry and Spring’s Landfall, both use Surrealism in communicating their meaning.

Tom Chambers uses technology to create dreamlike images that appear realistic yet are surreal and enhance the visual language of his artwork. His images capture a dreamlike state through the use of digital photography and media. Also, Surrealism is strong in his piece Spring’s Landfall, and present in the piece Maritime Sentry. Surrealism is the combination of reality and fantasy, which is communicated in his artwork and used to express their meanings.

Bibliography

Comprehensive History of all things Surrealist, http://www.surrealist.com/ (6/11/10)

Chambers, T.W, Tom Chambers Photography: Portfolio, http://www.tomchambersphoto.com/portfolio.html (6/11/10)

Brooks, K. The art of Tom Chambers, Huffpost living, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kimberly-brooks/photographys-sex-change-t_b_99886.html (7/11/10)