DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY & IMAGING

May 28, 2023

DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY & IMAGING - WEEK 9

WEEK 9 (29/5/2023)

Lectures: Digital Surrrealism

Realism: Takes subject matters of the ordinary and common world which we call "reality." It almost always takes a non-exotic and non-extraordinary subject matter and theme. There is no need to think outside of the box, as that is not "real."

Surrealism: It defies logic. Dreams and the workings of the subconscious mind inspire surrealistic art (French for "super-realism") filled with strange images and bizarre juxtapositions.

Fuelled by the teachings of Freud and the rebellious work of Dada artists, surrealists like Salvador Dalí promoted free association and dream imagery.

Dadaism: An anti war art movement with art works that is satirical and nonsensical in nature.

Salvador Dalí was a Spanish Surrealist painter and printmaker known for exploring subconscious imagery.

Digital Surrealism

Surrealism is a cultural movement focused on type of arts to express about the artist’s idea themselves. In this digital era surrealism is one of the top digital art styles.

Ways to create surrealism:

Dream-like scenes and symbolic images
Unexpected, illogical juxtapositions
Bizarre assemblages of ordinary objects
Primitive or child-like designs

Capturing your Dream

1. Sketch It Out: Take a piece of paper and pen/pencil or a tablet and start to sketch. Draw your vision out roughly. Don't finesse any details yet, but just lay out key points of your vision.

2. Find Reference Images: Gathering reference images will help you greatly in realising your new idea. Gather images that directly relate to what you have in mind.

Mindset During Creation

1. "Does this look real?"

Surrealism is at its best when it's convincing enough that it could be real, however we obviously know that the subject matter you are creating is nonexistent.

2. Make it happen to the best of your ability.

When you try to approach something challenging, you will learn the skills you may need for next time to make it work.

Photoshop makes it easier than ever to create surrealist images, requiring just a modicum of photomontage skill to produce impressive results.