The Medium is the message ? (again)

Previously on Skandalon

Previously on Skandalon.

“Bill Jacobson is an American photographer who was born in 1955 in Norwich, Connecticut. He earned a BFA in art and American studies from Brown University in 1977 and an MFA in photography from the San Francisco Art Institute in 1981. […] Since 1989, he has been making diffused out-of-focus photographs that negate (through the application of a defusing lens) the specificity of photographic vision in favor of an immateriality of light and form. His black and white pictures of isolated subjects suggested actions, moods, even narratives that were ethereal, haunting, and momentary.” (Wikipedia). More at The Museum of Contemporary Photography

Artist’s statement: “My work mirrors individuals’ private moments of introspection. I find myself compelled to capture the moments when a strong desire and need to feel comfortable in one’s own skin are present. Similarly, I want to capture a person’s attempt at reconnecting or discovering some form of greater magic (conventionally speaking, God) and the candid instant when a person reveals how far he or she feels from that magic.

In my most recent series, I explore the pervasive influence of commercialism on an individual’s psychology. To elicit a reaction beyond the status quo, I chose to implement advertising trends that will potentially appear in the near future. This work which features various corporate logos, was not intentionally created for a company’s commercial purposes, but instead to permit mutual exploitation by allowing the display of the company’s logo on my paintings. The aim of the series is to prompt reflection and introspection by the viewer of the psychological violations and absurdness of most advertising.” (Robert Standish biography). His official website.

“Books, which as objects of desire have seemed to have scant place in Hollywood’s slick, visual sensibility, have a new role in the business of television. Reality stars, who as nonunion actors are unreliably compensated (mostly in perks), have begun to see books as nearly mandatory, if they’re to cash in on their celebrity. A wide range of TV personalities — Chelsea Handler, Kate Gosselin, Bethenny Frankel, Countess LuAnn de Lesseps, Kathy Griffin, Melissa Gilbert, Mary Tyler Moore and Tori Spelling — have all produced memoirs and advice manuals recently. Maybe book publishing and the TV business, both of which are endangered by the Internet juggernaut, are a match made in heaven. TV gives books visibility; books give TV solidity and gravitas.”

Photo by Kevin Van Aelst: “Kevin was born in Elmira, New York and did most of his growing up in central Pennsylvania. He recieved a B.A. in Psychology from Cornell University in 2002 and an M.F.A. from the University of Hartford in 2005. He currently lives and works in New Haven, Connecticut. He has taught photography classes at the University of Hartford Art School, Middlesex Community College, and currently is teaching at Quinnipiac University and ACES/Educational Center for the Arts High School Program. He is a recipient of a 2008 fellowship grant from the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism. Photos of his can be seen weekly illustrating “The Medium” in the New York Times Magazine.” (Van Aelst’s biography).

You may already know some of his work: the apple sculpted like the world, the fingerprints series, the fractal egg, and much more.

Artist’s statement: “My color photographs consist of common artifacts and scenes from everyday life, which have been rearranged, assembled, and constructed into various forms, patterns, and illustrations. The images aim to examine the distance between the ‘big picture’ and the ‘little things’ in life—the banalities of our daily lives, and the sublime notions of identity and existance. While the depictions of information—such as an EKG, fingerprint, map or anatomical model—are unconventional, the truth and accuracy to the illustrations are just as valid as more traditional depictions. This work is about creating order where we expect to find randomness, and also hints that the minutiae all around us is capable of communicating much larger ideas.”

Artist’s statement: “With this new series of artworks that I have created as part of the “Cluster” series, I have been able to explore various styles, techniques and mediums by portraying what I see around me and then present these influences artistically. These influences that I have portrayed come from various avenues, such as the media, memories, people, textures, technology and so on. A Cluster to me resembles images or objects grouped together to form something larger. I feel this gives images or objects a stronger presence, rather than being displayed by themselves, creating a much more dynamic experience for the viewer.” (More)