The Surreal Architecture Of Jim Kazanjian
Jim Kazanjian’s surreal architecture images are a dreamlike scene that teeterings on turning into a nightmare at any moment. The dark dreamy mood and beautiful decay of crumbling elements allows the viewer to peek into a darker scene of a fictitious location. The hyper realism of the photographs was perplexing and I assumed that the images were shot and pieced together, little did I know that Kazanjian doesn’t use a camera for his creations. Finding images isn’t a difficult task for Jim anymore. He has been building his database since 2005 and today his collection holds close to 30,000 images.
“I am basically manipulating and assembling a disparate array of multiple photographic elements (sometimes more than 50) to produce a single homogenized image. My images are digitally manipulated composites built from photographs I find online. The technique I use could be considered “hyper-collage. I cobble together pieces from photos I find interesting and feed them into Photoshop. My method of construction has an improvisational and random quality to it, since it is largely driven by the source material I have available. I wade through my archive constantly and search for interesting combinations and relationships.”
Based out of Portland, Oregon, Kazanjian has spent the past 18 years as a commercial CGI artist in television and video game design. Kazanjian’s major influences for his work can be found through some of his favorite books. “My current series is inspired by the classic horror literature of H.P. Lovecraft, Algernon Blackwood and similar authors. I am intrigued with the narrative archetypes these writers utilize to transform the commonplace into something sinister and foreboding.”
To see more of this series visit www.kazanjian.net
Photos of Jim Kazanjian’s have been used with his permission.
