The Long Way There

Vincent Laforet recently posted a collection of photos relating to the (slowly) changing commuting patterns of Americans - and the photos all feature some photoshopped tilt-shift photography. He uses the process very effectively - I posted about making fake miniatures like this recently here.

New Miniature

photo taken today by Nathan Abels

Fake Miniatures

Here are a couple of fun fake tilt-shift photographs I made that are meant to look like miniature train sets or highly detailed dioramas models. I created them by some photoshopping a couple of my aerial photographs. You can find instructions on how to do it yourself here.

Photo by Nathan Abels, higher res here
Photo by Nathan Abels, higher res here

This topic reminds me of a few past posts on similar topics: Dioramas, and Built Environments

Dioramas

Charles Matton, "Hotel Hall", 2004 mixed media box construction, 86 x 29 x 24 inches with stand

Joe Fig, "Ryan McGinness: 3/23/06" 11x11x9.5", 2006

Joe Fig, "Julie Mehretu: 4/18/06" 11x11x9.5", 2006

Fig and Matton have both created dioramas based on artists' studios, but Matton's work often has more atmosphere and deliberate lighting, whereas Fig's pieces seem more matter-of-fact.

Today's post is inspired by the artwork for the new Interpol cd that comes out today and a recent post at moonriver based on dioramas and related work. I guess I've been pretty interested in the subject or medium for awhile now, given the amount of posts I've devoted to similar subject matter. Early on, I posted about the work of Michael Samuels, who builds interesting island seascapes and parking lots on table tops.

Michael Samuels, "Rescue Me"

I recently posted Callum Morton's small scale Billboards,

Callum Morton, "Screen #5 Outer Limits", 2006wood, acrylic paint and aluminium 93 × 110 × 45.5cm table 75 x 180 x 90 cm

and prior to that I featured the photography of Joeph O. Holmes.

And lastly, check out this genius combination of a potted plant and a miniature city park scene:

Christine Shank Photography

Christine Shank, It happened so suddenly no one
knew what to do

color photograph
24" x 30", 2005

Christine Shank, They choose to smile and pretend
nothing had changed

color photograph
24" x 30", 2005

Christine Shank, Everything became complicated
in the morning

color photograph
24" x 30", 2005

There's a beautiful mysterious quality to these photos. From her statement for the series of interiors she writes, "I design and construct interior room diagrams that show an aftermath of a destructive event. The domestic spaces illustrate one fragment of a larger narrative, depicting stories of frustration and loss, implying a connection to personal relationships through titling. By positioning the viewer separate from the event through doorways, hallways and adjoining rooms, the viewer becomes the voyeur, the eavesdropper the silent observer."

Built Enviornments

I've been interested in model train sets lately - especially model houses. Some of my recent work has included houses that are so generic they could almost pass for little plastic models. In light of this recent interest, I'd like to share a couple of artists whose work I relate to - though I must premise that this blog will not just include artwork that reminds me of my own. These two artists make small-scale sculptures that resemble out-of-context model train sets. Jeremy Mora uses a lot of found materials including cinder block fragments, mechanical pencil lead and broken pieces of brick. Michael Samuels uses miniature street lights, c-clamps, and everyday furniture. Here's a couple examples of their work that I enjoyed:


Jeremy Mora Skidmark, 2005
1.5 x 4.5 x 2.75 Inches , cinder block fragment, acrylic, styrene, graphite


Michael Samuels, "Bad Moon" Mixed Media, 2006