Artist Statement
"Each image has a unique signature and presence, managing to blend the mysterious with a hint of the familiar which can’t quite be grasped."
Artist Statement
"Each image has a unique signature and presence, managing to blend the mysterious with a hint of the familiar which can’t quite be grasped."
Challenging Creative Boundaries
Imagery which challenges creative boundaries and stimulates the imagination has always been at the forefront of my abstract photography. Exploring more unconventional methods of interpretation and presentation, I take familiar, everyday items found around my home and transform them from the ordinary into the extraordinary; this is my ‘Abstracted Reality’.
Right from the outset, my photographic vision has been to look at objects with fresh eyes and a new perspective, discovering beauty and transcendence in the commonplace. For me, photography is not so much about artistically recording what is there, but creating something new and different out of what exists already. I want to give new life to a subject, to alter and challenge the viewer’s perspective and to invite a sense of mystery, wonder and intrigue.
Exercise takes a back seat when the light is just right
To achieve this, I made the conscious decision not to heavily manipulate or artificially create my photographs. While I do undertake basic enhancements to my images, essentially what you see in the final presentation is what I saw through the lens.
Having to rely on my own imagination and creativity was invigorating and through this process I came to realise how highly I value the truthfulness and authenticity of a photographic image. I don’t want to manufacture my pictures in the computer. Paradoxically, I want my ‘unreal’ abstracts to be as ‘real’ and authentic as possible.
To achieve this, I made the conscious decision not to heavily manipulate or artificially create my photographs. While I do undertake basic enhancements to my images, essentially what you see in the final presentation is what I saw through the lens.
Exercise takes a back seat when the light is just right
Having to rely on my own imagination and creativity was invigorating and through this process I came to realise how highly I value the truthfulness and authenticity of a photographic image. I don’t want to manufacture my pictures in the computer. Paradoxically, I want my ‘unreal’ abstracts to be as ‘real’ and authentic as possible.
As a natural expansion of my photographic vision, I began to experiment with creating triptychs. The sense of compositional freedom which I enjoy in my abstract work is amplified even more in my triptych construction. Affording me greater scope and flexibility, the three panel format gives me the opportunity to expand my vision and push compositional boundaries to an even greater degree.
The use of colour, bold shapes and patterns, and strong, simple graphic design elements feature strongly in my work. I tend to use colour as a means of highlighting and dramatising shape and form so that each image has a unique signature and presence, managing to blend the mysterious with a hint of the familiar which can’t quite be grasped.
If you’d like to know a little more about my background and journey, please read the About - Jane Trotter page or visit "Behind the Lens" where the sections "Personal Perspective", "Thinking Abstract" and "In Harmony" have articles that may be of interest.
alan dove
NZIPP Qualified Master Photographer
Original and Unique
"Jane Trotter has an eye for producing graphic and abstract imagery that is both beautifully colourful, and abstractly strange. Words like original and unique are often overused when describing photography – but not in the case of Jane’s work."