Binoculars, by Erik Dalzen

Of the many things in art for which I am a sucker, a big one is Hiding. This is particularly the case in photographs that are essentially straightforward, such as the work of Erik Dalzen. Using different fabrics draped over ostensibly mundane objects (if we are correct in assuming the titles name the hidden thing), he creates spaces that are at once dramatic, romantic, staged, and absurd. The fabric is also used as backdrop for the covered object, making it, in a way, both figure and ground, even as it conceals the “true” subject.

My life and my work have been influenced by countless contradictory factors. In school I was taught one history; my own research revealed another. I was raised in a conservative community but reared with strikingly liberal siblings. I heard certain sentiments in church and others in punk music and literature. I enjoyed poverty’s company in Brazil and now have run-ins with true affluence in New York. I have coped with death from addiction while finding an addiction of my own in art. Through it all I have developed a critical and quizzical mind. Art ideas surge up as personal reconciliations of such disparate experiences.

In my work what is shown is one thing, and what is suggested is another. I meld half-truths, misinformation, and partial evidence to speak to an audience as familiar with incongruities as myself. I photograph with a palette of the banal, commonplace, and everyday. I borrow from numerous “-isms� to shape works that are accessible on varying levels, where a casual glance provides one pleasure and a careful study offers further still.

The included selections are from a body of work titled, “Some Things.” I am exploring the act of titling, the role of artist and viewer, perceptual effects of advertising, estimations of consumer goods, and the blurring of subject in respect to setting.

Keep it up Erik! And for the rest of you procrastinators, no more excuses. The deadline has been extended for YOU!

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 7th, 2007 at 3:12 pm by niki and is filed under Contenders, Fall '07 Hot Shots. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.