Here in Pittsburgh, the Silver Eye Center for Photography has been showing a collection of works from artist Maggie Taylor, along a theme near and dear to my heart. It's These Strange Adventures, a surreal trip through Wonderland and other remote areas of imagination.
What I found most intriguing-- and I thought you folks might, too-- is that her work is done by layering Victorian engravings, photographs and objects into Photoshop, and creating an illustrative scene from them. So what were once ancestors being sold on Ebay suddenly transform into a serious-faced Alice carrying a Cheshire cat on a moody landscape. Or the King and Queen of Hearts posing, both realistic and cartoonish, for posterity.This work illustrated a fascinating book of Alice in Wonderland, where the Alice here is portrayed by many different "Alice's" of different ages, in different antique photographs to complete a single story...
Perhaps that Drink Me bottle did more extensive personal alterations than height!
Another interesting thing about the work is its use of vivid vintage colors... shades that make the photos look hand-tinted, the way old lithographs or portraiture would have been during the day.
One of my favorites is Alice here with the dodo and other creatures in the Pool of Tears. Look how seamlessly these individual images were combined to create one full scene...For my good readers in the Pittsburgh area, there's still time to see this show at the Silver Eye Center. It runs through August 21, 2010, and it's located right on Carson Street on the South Side.The address is:
1015 East Carson Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15203
(412) 431-1810
www.silvereye.org
Oh, and before we go today, because I thought this would make you all laugh...
Do you think my cat, Alice, is trying to tell me something? It doesn't seem.... subtle.Have a Wonder-ful rest of your week!
5 comments:
Here is my sibmishun for kapshuning Kitty: http://twitpic.com/2doyie
Jaffer- Heh, yes, I'm sure that first week or so she might have felt that way. We were both having some challenges adjusting.
Now, however, we're marvelous friends and I look forward to the happy catly greeting I get every time I return home. She's become a real buddy.
Those prints really are lovely. They're just so well composed and beautifully colored.
I wanted to let you know that I've given you the Versatile Blogger Award. Check it out here http://myminkbetty.blogspot.com/2010/08/versatile-blogger-award.html
Betty- I think you're right about the composition-- there's a very pleasing balance to the pieces.
And thank you for the award! That's very kind.
I love your blog! I also like that you're from my neck of the woods... though this might make for some competition in finds at the local thrift stores.
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