Week #5: Write-up

Alberto Seveso
Beibeees
Retrieved from: http://burdu976.com/?portfolio=beibeees

Alberto Seveso
Il Mattono Ha L'oro in Bocca
Retrieved From: http://burdu976.com/?portfolio=il-mattino-ha-loro-in-bocca 

Alberto Seveso
The Black Trap in Munich
Retrieved from: http://burdu976.com/?portfolio=the-black-trap-in-munich

While doing some Photoshop research for another school project, I stumbled on Alberto Seveso, an amazing photographer and graphic artist who designed the box cover for the Photoshop CS6 extended version. I immediately searched him up in Google, and was blown away by his unique collage style, and beautiful photos. Through my research, I discovered that he takes his own photos of models, and then reworks the images in Photoshop to create his “sperm cutouts” (a term to describe the shapes he uses). He has worked on CD covers for many artists, magazine covers, and product ads, as well as his own photography.

My favourite photos that he’s taken would be his ink series. I’ve tried to capture interesting pictures of ink flowing through water in the past, but my attempts are nothing compared to what Seveso creates. His amazing images have so many vibrant colours and a lot of movement. Another series he created called Beibeees incorporates his ink photography with his portrait pieces. He is obviously a master of Photoshop, and his final images make me realize the importance of the high quality, and beautiful photographs he uses to start his projects. I’m sure it would be difficult to create such incredible final pieces with mediocre originals.

The article Digital Photography and the Question of realism by Antonia Bardis discusses the emergence of digital photography, and questions if this new kind of photography is affecting our outlook on photography in general. The following quote stood out to me because I believe that it explains Seveso’s approach to photography and art making.

Digital photography is a medium that privileges fragmentation. As a result, the photographer now has gained complete control over the image and has acquired the freedom of a painter to depict whatever he or she can imagine. Consequently, just like paintings, digital photographs have come to be seen as constructions. (Bardis, 2004)

Seveso builds up layers of photos that he’s cut and manipulated in order to create his images. Some of the final pieces have a very painterly look and allow the eye to move around the page with ease. Others have a choppier effect, and seem cut up and re-arranged. I think that the use of the word “construction” in Bardis’ text is extremely appropriate in describing Seveso’s style. 

Alberto Seveso Website: http://burdu976.com

Work Cited:

Bardis, A. (2004). Digital Photography and the Question of Realism. Journal of Visual Art Practice 3: 3, pp. 209–218

Seveso, A. (2014). Alberto Seveso. Retrieved from http://burdu976.com