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Showing posts with label fine art. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fine art. Show all posts
Sunday, August 3, 2014
Saturday, July 19, 2014
Friday, June 20, 2014
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
I meet the coolest and most interesting individuals
Sojourner is a wonderfully fascinating individual who has, and continues to lead, a beautifully rich life. Experiencing it with a passion for learning, observing and feeling.
We share the same interest in meeting new individuals and creating positive and creative collaborations. Our portrait session was nothing short of amazing. Among the many portraits we created, I also had the opportunity to add to my growing series which is, Untitled (The Dress).
It's an exploration of interaction and identity with this one dress and what it represents. Here is one of our collaborations from Sunday morning's photo session.
We share the same interest in meeting new individuals and creating positive and creative collaborations. Our portrait session was nothing short of amazing. Among the many portraits we created, I also had the opportunity to add to my growing series which is, Untitled (The Dress).
It's an exploration of interaction and identity with this one dress and what it represents. Here is one of our collaborations from Sunday morning's photo session.
© William Zuback
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Saturday, January 11, 2014
Whats old is new again, analog one year later
It's been almost one year ago that I pulled out and dusted off the 4x5 view camera along with some vintage odd camera's and dedicated myself to exclusively creating my fine art images with film again. With this experiment came a renewed appreciation for the craft of photography, which for people who know me, is very important. I've had successes and failures with this "new again" old process of picture making but the successes far exceeded my expectations and I don't see myself going back soon.
My current work flow process is that I photograph my subjects with my 4x5 view camera and then process the film in my crude but functional darkroom. I do have an enlarger and could take the traditional process through to completion but found the print and paper quality of today's inkjet printers makes my work look like a traditional beautiful black and white print. So I scan my film to an old Epson scanner, one sheet at a time, do my minor tweaks in Photoshop and then make a digital print. I'm loving the results and the process.
It's forced me to renew the discipline of the skills I've learned and leave behind the bad habits I've created from shooting digital for the last 12 years. I'm in love with the process, there is no denying that. I feel that the people that step in front of my camera have also come to love the process as well. Some of them never having been captured with film before.
Everything is forced to slow down to make it work. No more rapid fire of model movements. Each pose thought out, tested, rearranged, "yes, that's it"!, perfect, don't move, click. Sometimes I only use the modeling lights on my strobes and my sitter is asked to hold steady for a one, two, sometimes three second exposures. Sometimes I sync to my strobes and capture the moment in a flash.
What I have found through out this past year is that I shoot less but have a higher quantity in ratio to the amount of captures, that are wonderful, usable images. A normal figure study/portrait session consists of capturing 20-30 images and I've found the results and reward to be unparalleled, at least for me, my methods and my desired outcome.
I listen more and see more broadly, fine tuning each detail to be right in the camera. I experience more, I share more, I am seeing through a new set of eyes!
My current work flow process is that I photograph my subjects with my 4x5 view camera and then process the film in my crude but functional darkroom. I do have an enlarger and could take the traditional process through to completion but found the print and paper quality of today's inkjet printers makes my work look like a traditional beautiful black and white print. So I scan my film to an old Epson scanner, one sheet at a time, do my minor tweaks in Photoshop and then make a digital print. I'm loving the results and the process.
It's forced me to renew the discipline of the skills I've learned and leave behind the bad habits I've created from shooting digital for the last 12 years. I'm in love with the process, there is no denying that. I feel that the people that step in front of my camera have also come to love the process as well. Some of them never having been captured with film before.
Everything is forced to slow down to make it work. No more rapid fire of model movements. Each pose thought out, tested, rearranged, "yes, that's it"!, perfect, don't move, click. Sometimes I only use the modeling lights on my strobes and my sitter is asked to hold steady for a one, two, sometimes three second exposures. Sometimes I sync to my strobes and capture the moment in a flash.
What I have found through out this past year is that I shoot less but have a higher quantity in ratio to the amount of captures, that are wonderful, usable images. A normal figure study/portrait session consists of capturing 20-30 images and I've found the results and reward to be unparalleled, at least for me, my methods and my desired outcome.
I listen more and see more broadly, fine tuning each detail to be right in the camera. I experience more, I share more, I am seeing through a new set of eyes!
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| Current ©William Zuback 2013 |
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| Abstract II ©William Zuback 2013 |
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| Quiet ©William Zuback 2013 |
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| Midnight ©William Zuback 2014 |
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| iphone self portrait
I am always looking for interested and enthusiastic sitters to create beautiful portraits. Message me if interested.
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Monday, March 11, 2013
Film, why have I ignored you so long?
It has been about six weeks since I immersed myself completely in shooting film again with my fine art and commission work after over a decade hiatus shooting only digital. I have spent most of my professional life shooting with film but when digital took over, the economics and convenience of it was to much to ignore. Dedicating myself to strictly digital since 2001 has now brought me back full circle. Film; Why have I ignored you so long?
What has the return to film photography meant to me personally and professionally? Film has enlivened a child like enthusiasm to what and how I see again. I am paying closer attention to the details, knowing that I need to get this right, here at the capture stage, because there isn't any fancy post production work that will fix it if I don't.
I have begun capturing my images with a variety of 2 1/4 as well as sheet film camera's. I think I am most enjoying the process of shooting again with a view camera. Dark cloth over the head, loupe on the ground glass, meticulously analyzing all four corners and everything in-between. I have once again fallen in love with the process of photographing people with this large cumbersome piece of equipment. Part of your attention is definitely on the equipment itself because there is so much you need to do prior to capture. I have found though, that this slow methodical process has also created a real openness and clarity when a person is in front of the lens.
It is because of the slowness of set-up and capture that you need to maintain a genuine and honest dialog with the sitter. A dialog that goes beyond the instruction of pose and one more personal and real. You do shoot less, the client doesn't get 50+ images to choose from but you create a real live experience that is wonderful, challenging and rewarding.
What has the return to film photography meant to me personally and professionally? Film has enlivened a child like enthusiasm to what and how I see again. I am paying closer attention to the details, knowing that I need to get this right, here at the capture stage, because there isn't any fancy post production work that will fix it if I don't.
I have begun capturing my images with a variety of 2 1/4 as well as sheet film camera's. I think I am most enjoying the process of shooting again with a view camera. Dark cloth over the head, loupe on the ground glass, meticulously analyzing all four corners and everything in-between. I have once again fallen in love with the process of photographing people with this large cumbersome piece of equipment. Part of your attention is definitely on the equipment itself because there is so much you need to do prior to capture. I have found though, that this slow methodical process has also created a real openness and clarity when a person is in front of the lens.
It is because of the slowness of set-up and capture that you need to maintain a genuine and honest dialog with the sitter. A dialog that goes beyond the instruction of pose and one more personal and real. You do shoot less, the client doesn't get 50+ images to choose from but you create a real live experience that is wonderful, challenging and rewarding.
Sunday, August 12, 2012
The Identity Project, Dismantlement & Rebirth
The idea of the Identity Project has been in my mind for well over six years. The work I finally created is much different than what I sketched so many years ago. Like any good story it must have a great beginning, middle, and end. This is the end for this stage of the project and it's ending is at a place and time that feels right.
A recent book I read called Dismantled by Jennifer McMahon has a powerful line, "Dismantlement equals freedom". That is where I'm at with this series. I created my first set of images for the Identity Project series in April and now four months later it is complete and ready to be dismantled. Another powerful passage that resonated as I was near completion of this project was this, "Suz smiled. "Don't you get it?" she asked. "It's the ultimate act of creativity. Destruction is transformation. In order to be reborn, you have to die." Well, the series is just beginning a new life as I move from creation to exhibition. A rebirth for sure. During this process I've also found a couple additional series that can be pulled from the larger umbrella of the Identity Project. One of these additional series was what helped me get selected for the CoPA Scholarship which will allow me to create a book along with the exhibition, scheduled next year for the Identity Project.
So as the lights come down from the Identity Project I feel a sense of freedom as I begin some additional creative journeys. One liberating transformation of this symbolic destruction will be my exploration into painting. Something I haven't done since high school. I've been encouraged by some art friends that I can do it. We will see, but I'm sure the journey will be exciting none the less.
So as I leave the Identity Project behind until it's exhibition and accompanying book later next year, I will leave you with some interesting facts from this visual journey:
A recent book I read called Dismantled by Jennifer McMahon has a powerful line, "Dismantlement equals freedom". That is where I'm at with this series. I created my first set of images for the Identity Project series in April and now four months later it is complete and ready to be dismantled. Another powerful passage that resonated as I was near completion of this project was this, "Suz smiled. "Don't you get it?" she asked. "It's the ultimate act of creativity. Destruction is transformation. In order to be reborn, you have to die." Well, the series is just beginning a new life as I move from creation to exhibition. A rebirth for sure. During this process I've also found a couple additional series that can be pulled from the larger umbrella of the Identity Project. One of these additional series was what helped me get selected for the CoPA Scholarship which will allow me to create a book along with the exhibition, scheduled next year for the Identity Project.
So as the lights come down from the Identity Project I feel a sense of freedom as I begin some additional creative journeys. One liberating transformation of this symbolic destruction will be my exploration into painting. Something I haven't done since high school. I've been encouraged by some art friends that I can do it. We will see, but I'm sure the journey will be exciting none the less.
So as I leave the Identity Project behind until it's exhibition and accompanying book later next year, I will leave you with some interesting facts from this visual journey:
- 14 men volunteered to be a part of the Identity Project
- The median age of the male participants was 56.
- 19 females volunteered to be a part of the Identity Project.
- The median age of the female participants was 38.
- Out of the 33 individuals who participated in this series, 21 volunteered unsolicited and 12 volunteered when asked to be a part of the project.
- I took 1,750 digital captures in the creation of the images needed for the Identity Project.
- Some AMAZING honest stories came out of this series from it's participants.
- I grew as a person and an artist from my chance to work with so many beautiful human beings.
- The "Suspicious Behavior" series was a by product of The Identity Project.
- A series of encaustic nudes is another series that is a result of The Identity Project.
Saturday, August 13, 2011
The Portrait Project: Faces of Resilience by Colleen Kassner
Colleen Kassner will be one of thirty artists participating in the Madonna and Child: Interpreted exhibit I'm curating for Gallery H20/Soup's On, this fall. Colleen currently has a beautiful exhibit of her oil painted portraits showing at Gallery Grand in the Grand Avenue Club. The Grand Avenue Club (GAC) is an independent non-profit organization created to provide Milwaukee County citizens who experience mental illness, a supportive community with an array of opportunities to help with their recovery and productivity.
Colleen had the honor this past year of being the "Artist in Residence" at the Gallery Grand through a grant from the Greater Milwaukee Foundation/Mary Nohl fund. This residency culminated in the creation of twenty large oil painted portraits of Grand Avenue Club members.
The first thing I notice when exiting the elevator doors directing me down the short hallway to the gallery are these hauntingly beautiful larger than life self portraits of Colleen. They show her own earlier struggle with mental illness. Each painting rich with emotion and depth of character at a particular moment in time. I enter the gallery and am greeted by Colleen as she enthusiastically introduces me to the beautiful exhibition space. Each portrait is accompanied by a brief bio of the individual represented in her work.
We have all heard of the proverb stating that "the eyes are the window to the soul". Colleen's twenty oil painted portraits express that with an immense amount of accuracy and realism. As a portrait photographer I was immediately drawn to the expressive quality and attention that she represented in the eyes of all her friends. Each portrait representing the uniqueness of the individual. The luminous quality of the skin, especially the highlights, also drew me into each and every portrait. Colleen poignantly represents the twenty members of GAC with the love and respect she feels for both the people and the organization.
The show runs through September 23 with a closing/dedication event from 4:30-7:30, that evening. The gallery is located at 604 N. Water Street, Milwaukee, WI. and is open Tuesday's and Wednesday's from 10am-3pm or by appointment by calling 414-795-7108.
Colleen had the honor this past year of being the "Artist in Residence" at the Gallery Grand through a grant from the Greater Milwaukee Foundation/Mary Nohl fund. This residency culminated in the creation of twenty large oil painted portraits of Grand Avenue Club members.
The first thing I notice when exiting the elevator doors directing me down the short hallway to the gallery are these hauntingly beautiful larger than life self portraits of Colleen. They show her own earlier struggle with mental illness. Each painting rich with emotion and depth of character at a particular moment in time. I enter the gallery and am greeted by Colleen as she enthusiastically introduces me to the beautiful exhibition space. Each portrait is accompanied by a brief bio of the individual represented in her work.
We have all heard of the proverb stating that "the eyes are the window to the soul". Colleen's twenty oil painted portraits express that with an immense amount of accuracy and realism. As a portrait photographer I was immediately drawn to the expressive quality and attention that she represented in the eyes of all her friends. Each portrait representing the uniqueness of the individual. The luminous quality of the skin, especially the highlights, also drew me into each and every portrait. Colleen poignantly represents the twenty members of GAC with the love and respect she feels for both the people and the organization.
The show runs through September 23 with a closing/dedication event from 4:30-7:30, that evening. The gallery is located at 604 N. Water Street, Milwaukee, WI. and is open Tuesday's and Wednesday's from 10am-3pm or by appointment by calling 414-795-7108.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Artist: Maurizio Anzeri
I came across the work of Maurizio Anzeri like I do with many of the artists I discover and later admire, searching the internet. As a photographer who does a fair amount of portraiture I was drawn to his enhanced art creations from portraits he collects from many sources including flea markets. My fascination with masks of ones identity weather it be a real mask or behavioral drew me into his layered portrait work. Anzeri takes found, often vintage, photographs and creates his embroidered patterns by sewing directly onto the anonymous portrait. He begins the process by first sketching out his pattern idea's on tracing paper placed on top of the photograph.
“Photographs from the 40s and 50s have a totally different quality from photos we’re used to today. We don’t recognize them as photographs now, they really look like watercolours or drawings. The images I use are anonymous, I find them everywhere; I’m really into flea markets and car boot sales, when you enter you have no idea what you’re going to encounter. In everything I see there is something I am interested in, but I try to look at them as plain canvas. Art history is very important to me, it’s all been done before but it’s never been done by you: if you don’t look into the past there is no chance to go into the future. The surrealist movement is important to my work, but I don’t become obsessed by it, it’s not dictating rules. I understand history in a formal respect, and think of past artists like traveling companions – making work is like going for a walk with them. At the end of the day it’s about humanity.” (excerpt from the artist's profile on Saatchi Gallery website)
When I view portraits I'm always trying to discover something about the individual(s) in the photograph. What is the photograph revealing that can help me make those judgements/discoveries? What Anzeri does with his portraits adds another dimension to this puzzle which I find very exciting. His work makes me wish you could find out more about the persons he chooses to render with his embroidery to see how close or far he comes to their real persona with his creative embellishments. Has his interpretation mimicked their persona or has he made them sexier or moodier, more introverted or extroverted? As fun as it would be to know, I think it's even more fun to imagine for yourself who that person may have been. Anzeri's work doesn't answer any questions but creates even more.
Monday, July 4, 2011
Building on the "Gestation" series
I feel this series is one that has many facets. I plan on exploring this subject for a while. Here is a sneak peek of Stage II of Gestation.
You can see earlier images from my Gestation series at my website.
Gestation taps into the emotions and connection to the creation of life. It evokes emotions of fear, delight, and surprise, as well as, reflections of one’s past, present and future. The images balance between a sense of calm and anxiety while representing a slice of life in one’s family album. Gestation is about beginnings and the challenges of life from conception to death, however long that span may be.
Gestation taps into the emotions and connection to the creation of life. It evokes emotions of fear, delight, and surprise, as well as, reflections of one’s past, present and future. The images balance between a sense of calm and anxiety while representing a slice of life in one’s family album. Gestation is about beginnings and the challenges of life from conception to death, however long that span may be.
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