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Artistaday.com - Find new contemporary art, create your own gallery of art

Guest curator: Jim Kazanjian  
Portland, OR artist


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About Jim


Jim Kazanjian’s surreal landscapes offer phantasmagoric visions of a where-is-this world, defined by impossibly complex architecture and M.C.Escher-esque black-and-white graphics. Inspired by the imaginary realms of cult author H.P. Lovecraft – whose wild, cosmic short stories set the mold for much of the 20th century’s best science fiction – Kazanjian’s aim is to redress the “misunderstanding that photography has a kind of built-in objectivity”. It is our trust in photography’s inherent connection with naturalism, then, that makes the deliberate verisimilitude of his works so intriguingly disorienting. Since receiving his MFA from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, in 1992, he has worked as a commercial CGI artist in TV and game production, and it shows in his compositions, which he creates by sifting through thousands of images before finding a few dozen that can be piled together to, in his words, “create something new.”


Jim's selections


Dan Holdsworth

London, UK

"

Dan Holdsworth's cyclopean landscapes are sublime and haunting. An almost imperceptible tone of foreboding permeates the work, which is quite engaging.

"

Alejandro Chaskielberg

Buenos Aires, Argentina

"

There is a kind of hyperreal quality to Alejandro Chaskielberg's photographs. They have a wonderful spatial, resonance that I find to be slightly dislocating.

"

Jonathan Andrew

Amsterdam, The Netherlands

"

In Jonathan Andrew's WW2 bunker series, the contrast between the dilapidated, abandoned structures and his polished photographic technique is very effective. The images fluctuate between the eerie and beautiful.

"

Edward Burtynsky

Toronto, ON, Canada

"

Edward Burtynsky's uncanny landscapes project an intense presence and are rich with drama. My favorite is the amazing "Shipbreaking" series. Very potent stuff.

"

Richard Mosse

New York, NY

"

Richard Mosse is phenomenal. His work operates on a level that renders language impotent. I stand in awe.

"


Check out some other great guest curators


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Danielle Krysa

Founder of The Jealous Curator

Brooke Shaden

Los Angeles, CA artist

Steven Diamant

Owner, Arcadia Gallery

Nick Patten

Hudson, NY artist

Sayaka Ganz

Fort Wayne, IN artist

Arthur Brouthers

Founder Culture Initiative, Artist

Liz Stinson

Writer, WIRED Design

Ali Cavanaugh

St. Louis, MO artist

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