We’re in the middle of a worldwide coronavirus pandemic, and I’ve hit a creative wall. A solidly reinforced brick wall. On the plus side, a few chats with friends and internet scrolls tells me that I’m definitely not the only creative person struggling to create. On the downside, I have a pre-pandemic wedding I need to deliver and photos from a personal documentary project I want to immerse myself in.
So I’m taking the best piece of advice I’ve read for creatives since this whole crisis started: I’m working on whatever I feel inspired by. The other day that meant sitting at a picnic table in the sun drawing robots. I’ve decided that in order to elevate my drawings and linocuts to the next level, the best thing to do is to give up on human forms and just go full out surreal. (Robots need love too.)
I've long been inspired by the portraits and collage work of Anthony Gerace. His collection of portrait collages is rooted in 1950s imagery and colours, and combines a delicate beauty with a feeling of disorientation. Inspired by this work, I decide to experiment with the creation of a digital collage using a studio portrait I captured in winter 2019. The elegant pose of the woman, the fierce look of her green eyes, and the delicate placement of her hand create a formidable subject against a rich green background. I use different elements from the portrait to create a digital collage of the photo.
This digital collage was created by Montréal portrait photographer Selena Phillips-Boyle. This portrait was captured at the Luminarium Studio in Montréal. While Selena is adept at studio photography, she is also quite passionate about photographing people in their environment and she specializes in environmental portraits. This Life by Selena Photography blog post about portrait photography was produced by Montreal photographer Selena Phillips-Boyle. Cet article de blogue sur la photographie de portrait par Life by Selena Photography est écrit et photographié par Selena Phillips-Boyle, photographe montréalaise.