I am intrigued with the issue of reality. Traditionally, photography was viewed as an honest replication of the real world. But, as we all know, even from its inception, photographers used their medium to alter, accentuate and eliminate aspects of reality.
This series is based on time-line compression.
While on the road in Missouri, my husband and I encountered a severe thunderstorm. I shot hundreds of photos through the windshield as we sped down the freeway (I as a passenger, not driver.)
When I uploaded these shots to my computer, I was struck with the time-lines in the metadata. I found that I had taken up to seven shots per minute! So, working with blending software, I was able to compress and construct each one-minute into a final representation of the reality I encountered.
Each piece is titled with its time and date.
Ellen Jantzen
I was born and raised in St. Louis Missouri, USA
In 1992, I Graduated Summa Cum Laude from FIDM (Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising), Los Angeles California I have a varied background; originally my emphasis was on graphic arts and I obtained my first college degree in this field. I became disillusioned with the basic nature of art for advertising sake and dropped out to become an organic gardener and cheese-maker. I raised goats also. But this became unfulfilling as I really longed for creative outlets and interactions. I then went back to college and got my second degree in fashion design at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles, California. I became quite fascinated with using fabrics in innovative ways which led me to work for several major corporations designing clothing concepts and products. I also briefly taught product design at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena California. Alas, I again became disillusioned with the corporate/academic climate and longed for something more creative. I have been making my current body of work with digitally manipulated photography for over three years now and find great satisfaction and excitement each day as I work. This is the perfect marriage of two dimensional graphic sensibilities and my need to create “things”. Because I create ephemeral assemblages to use in my photography, my desire to work three dimensionally is fulfilled also.
