Drawn to Abstraction
The more I continue to age the more I seem to be drawn to images that retain a level of familiarity, but draw me away from the realities of life. This leads me to experimenting with more abstract techniques, specifically those centered around existing ICM standards.
That said, I'm wondering if I am tending to drift a bit too much off-center, and how others may feel about what I'm currently producing. Not that it will change the way I feel, but I find it helpful to understand the tastes of others I respect.
Following is a series of images I took recently in Portugal - taken specifically to explore varying levels of abstraction.
As a favor, I would like folks to return an HONEST opinion on what they feel, and if any particularly (if at all) appeal. To be clear, I am NOT expecting all/any to like these images (I understand we have different tastes...), and would prefer a comment indicating dislike over one that is disingenuous, or a lack of one 'just to be kind'.
Thanks in advance!
8 Comments
I think we may be on related/parallel paths. #3 is the most interesting. It is jumbled enough to distance itself from reportage, but not so far that you cannot understand what is happening.
Thanks for your input Andrew - that makes sense to me knowing your own explorations into uncharted territory :-)
They are all excellent. Are they all just made with ICM? You must follow your muse and not give a damn if others like or understand your work. I like it very much and understand the need to do it but so what? I am just another photographer with his own muse to follow and it happens to love these. I have only done one ICM pic but have done a number of photos that just had perspective changed.
Thanks Colin, I appreciate your kind feedback.
I figured out some time ago that the goal is not to please others but be happy that your work reflects who you are and what you enjoy as an artist. Of course, we'd all prefer that others enjoy our work also, but I feel that considering what others may or may not feel stifles the personal expression that makes each of us unique.
These are all created using the Bluristic app on iPhone, an app I have been exploring for some time now. Bluristic is basically a long exposure app, but I push it beyond intended use.
If interested in ICM please check out my website (alanbrownphotography.com). I have explored ICM techniques for some years now and document my experiences to help others. I know from experience that ICM can be a difficult beast to grasp initially, but understanding (and no, it's not down to luck......) a little bit of practice brings control and prediction.
Reach out if I can help in any way.
I like the second one best. Nice. (Must be Lagos.)
Close - this was actually shot in Évora.
I just love wandering the back alleys in these Portuguese towns, they’re so full of character.
Another thing we have in common is travel, and we don't go to obvious tourist places. We used to get in the car and go, and we didn't know where we were going.
We've been to Barcelona, although, having just said we don't go to tourist places, we actually didn't go to Barcelona. We went to a very small place on the outside called Cardedeu. I use a dictation program, and I don't know if it's going to know how to spell Cardedeu, and I don't know how to spell it.
We were going to go to Portugal, but my disease has progressed to the point where I can no longer do long-distance driving. Wandering around and seeing things is not a problem because I have a super wheelchair. Children are fascinated by it, particularly if they see me pressing the button, which raises me up high so I can get stuff off the top shelf in Tesco or wherever.
I always find it really cute that children, boys and girls, are fascinated by my wheelchair. Their parents, of course, tell them off and try to pull them away, and I tell the parents off. I say it's quite all right: they're just being curious, and I don't mind at all. They're little kids, and they're fascinated by my machine. I don't know why people think disabled people should be ignored, but there we are.
Anyway, I have to get very creative about what I photograph and where I photograph it because of this lack of ability to travel long distances. I recently went to Norwich to WEX, where I traded camera stuff and got myself a Hasselblad. On the way home, I said to my husband, "Oh, I think we can start to go away now because I feel fine. I don't feel tired at all, and I'm still with it. The car's staying in lane, and I really was having no problem whatsoever."
He humoured me, I now realize, by saying, "Oh, that's good if you feel like that, and we've driven this amount of miles." The following day, I woke up as if a sledgehammer had hit me. I was in a great deal of pain, and I couldn't speak properly. No, I won't be able to get into the car and drive off to Germany, France, or Portugal, but I'm really, really glad I did all the traveling and that I did some of it on my own and some of it with John.
The times I was on my own were basically to do with dog shows, or I went to Sweden near Stockholm and took a female dog with me to be mated. Fortunately, that worked out very well. I got seven puppies, and it founded my line.
Anyway, I'm rambling on. I just wanted to say that's another thing we have in common: the real pleasure in seeing how different places are from each other. I actually know people who can't see why they need to travel more than 30 miles from where they live. They say, "Why would I want to do that? I'm happy here." There's just no answer to it.
They are. Yeah, duh. The sign says Evora. I should have my eyes checked! haha