Menu
The New Contemporary Art Magazine

Michael Jackson’s Luminograms Capture Abstract Displays of Light

Michael Jackson is a British artist currently exploring the luminogram process to capture monochromatic, abstract displays of light. For those who aren't familiar, luminograms are images created by exposure of photosensitive materials to light without the intervention of an object. "No camera, no film, no objects - just light directed onto light sensitive paper in the darkroom," explains Jackson.

Michael Jackson is a British artist currently exploring the luminogram process to capture monochromatic, abstract displays of light. For those who aren’t familiar, luminograms are images created by exposure of photosensitive materials to light without the intervention of an object. “No camera, no film, no objects – just light directed onto light sensitive paper in the darkroom,” explains Jackson.

Photographic theorist Gottfried Jäger once described luminograms as “the result of pure light design; the rudimentary expression of an interaction of light and photosensitive material… a kind of self representation of light.” Borrowing those words from Jäger, Michael Jackson is debuting his latest luminogram series entitled “The Self Representation of Light” today at MMX Gallery in London.

Jackson’s exhibit will feature 20 examples of his unique selenium toned silver gelatin prints, which he spent a year perfecting. “My work is based upon the idea that there is a universality between all things. There is no difference between an image of a gull and of a luminogram made purely of light. Both are the final result of decisions made from ones experience of life – they are all connected,” he shares.

“They offer a different kind of world to the one we are used to – an abstract world that still holds one foot in reality. Working with luminograms is a time consuming process – there are just so many variables. These are a selection of the many hundreds of studies created to try and understand this wonderful process.” As he says, it’s as close as he can get in photography to painting.

Meta
Share
Facebook
Reddit
Pinterest
Email
Related Articles
Though their work can be described as digital art, Ransom & Mitchell are very hands-on with their process. To create the fanciful worlds that they photograph, the San Francisco-based duo sews original costumes, makes props and builds sets. Experts in studio lighting, they imbue their works with a magical ambiance, only adding digitally-painted details to render that which can't be done in real life. For the upcoming group show "Rough & Ready Sideshow" at Bash Contemporary in San Francisco, Ransom & Mitchell will be exhibiting a new series of photo-illustrations that hearken back to circus freak shows. While there are obvious ethical issues with sideshows themselves, the artists's vintage-inspired new works are loaded with nostalgic humor, kitsch and illusions. Aunia Kahn, Stefanie Vega and Alexandra Manukyan will also be participating in the exhibition. The opening reception will be held on October 11 and the show will be on view through November 8.
For his latest series, French photographer and digital artist Cal Redback has created slightly unsettling portraits of people fused with nature. Many of his subjects are inspired by those of fantasy and horror, as in his version of "Treebeard" of The Lord of the Rings or "Hellraiser". Redback adds a plant-like appearance to his own characters by photographing them and then digitally manipulating the image in Photoshop. Botanicals sprout from their cheeks and eye sockets in beautiful and sometimes painful looking displays, even more alarming by their casual demeanor.
German photographer Bartholot appreciates the unexplained. Bartholot is not looking to copy a kind of reality or life; his photos celebrate artificiality and design. His digital images merge his own sense of fashion with surrealism and usually start with a single thought or mood. They have been described as a combination of sculpture and photography, also reflecting his interest in colors and textures. For his latest collaboration with the Spanish creative studio Serial Cut, he created a series of photographs of draped unmasked characters.
Honolulu, Hawaii based photographer and designer Petey Ulatan often creates images that explore the impossible. A recent series, which Ulatan posts to his Instagram page, takes this idea and applies it to infinite scenarios: digital photo-manipulations of his own photographs from his travels, others from Google images, that re-shape the world as if it were folded into a giant cube.

Subscribe to the Hi-Fructose Mailing List