Photography and my relationship with "Impressionism"

•

"Recline"

“Not Necessarily Photography”

“I really just wanted to make a mess of things.”

"Wanting to make a mess of things" was the driving force behind some of my newest work. For over 25 years I had found myself sort of “stuck” in the rigidity of photography. Perfectly exposed film and perfectly printed images scaled large to impress. I loved this type of image creating, but my visual expression was feeling closed in. The images seem to lack emotion to me. It was time for me to work in a different direction.

I found myself creating with digital phone cameras contained in the Blackberry and iPhone. Quality be damned. I wanted to be spontaneous. I was looking for emotional content. Something needed to strike my nerves like a “Jackson Pollock” painting. Study and experimentation had me diving into work by Jerry Ueslmann and wife Maggie Taylor, John Paul Caponigro, and others pushing the rigid boundaries of photography.

Yet, I wanted it to be my own. I did not want to emulate someones creativity. It had to be “My Voice...”

Of my new work many ask... “Are these photographs or are they paintings? I felt like I needed to respond with an explanation. Simply put, all these images begin as photographs. Through the magic of some serious digital tools, I utilize on my 12 core MacPro computer they are transformed into a more painterly style or look. Let me explain....

Over the last 15 years alone an unbelievable advance in photography have taken place. Good or bad, a multitude of changes has collectively altered the way images are captured, transformed and printed. I personally have not used a film camera since 2005. Film cameras for cinema photographers creating feature length movies are being replaced by very elaborate digital capture devices. My expensive medium format Mamiya RZ film camera system lies dormant in a closet. I even have a 4 x 5 field camera. It uses film that is very difficult to find a place to have it developed. These film cameras, I have now been replaced with a Nikon that was state of the art in 2007. Now, even newer tools are surpassing it’s capabilities. My vintage darkroom equipment, enlargers and processors have been replaced by some state of the art digital printing equipment. Collectively, I believe all these technological advances are allowing me to break into new ground. I am finding I can be more “expressive” with the color and content of images I create. Almost as if I was painting, but using digital captures as “reference” images.

In 2008 I closed my gallery of fine art photography to pursue other pathways. That year I traveled to Paris, France and renewed my love for the Impressionst Artists. Monet, Cezanne, Degas, Renior, Van Gogh and Pissaro were at the top of my list. I found it interesting that the Impressionist movement (in the mid 1800‘s) was born out of changes in the centralized art world. The formal artist painting in a realist style were given the nod of approval by high ranking art critics at the time. Early on, these very talented “impressionist” artist’s (mentioned above) works were passed of as “rubbish.” Taking an interest in the timeline of “impressionism” made me realize there is a correlation between what seems to have happened then and what is happening with photography now. I could sum this up by saying that there are many new forms of fine art photography branching off from the traditional “realism” of photographic content. Mostly a result of having digital tools that allows us photographers to “alter” an image beyond it’s original state of realism. Some of us photographers doing this are the “rebels” of the era, creating new work that pushes into new and valid territory of photographic imaging.

To mold these images into this new “Impressionist Style” I use a number of software tools. Most notably, Photoshop to create, compose, and color the image into an initial composite that looks very photographic. At this point I utilize a series of “Plugins” created by Topaz labs to create “variable renders” from the initial composite. These layers are then re-entered into Photoshop in specific “blend modes” and opacity to achieve the end result. I feel that this “painterly” look grants me license to be more expressive and alter an image to my personal taste. It places me outside the boundaries of traditional photography. My intentions all along was to create something tastefully new and different. I am constantly making a multitude of “Choices” to achieve the end result. Only time will tell how well it is received..... Maybe some will think it “Rubbish,” much like the impressionist movement was labeled so many years ago.

Enjoy,

Mark Bergsma