Not added to my Blog in to long, going to try and put time aside to keep it updated from now on.
Anyway, just wanted to talk a little about a shot I have just finished and explain a bit of the story behind the image, what I was thinking about as I put it together.
Here's the image.
The shot is called SEALAND and it is my attempt to create a totally isolated city in the ocean, the image is built from well over 400 image(Which means it has much detail, which can't properly be defined by seeing the 750 pixel wide web image).
I kind of had the idea of creating a city from scratch for a little while, some of my shots over the last year have really been about creating whole new realities and I really wanted to keep pushing that. These 2 are the best examples for this idea, both done between September2006 and January2007
and
The place which got me started on this image is a pier near The Hague in Holland in a place called Scheveningen. (click this link to see http://www.minbuza.nl/en/welcome/pictures,gal_steden.html?page=14&photo=detail ) I really liked the 80's cluncky'ness of it design and found this a good starting point for the buildings which I would then add to it.
After using shots of the pier taken from many angles I then spent time travelling around collecting shots of buildings and industry to create the city.
This image became a real labour of love, and I'm not even so sure it is finished now. I arrived at the Pier at a really great sunset after quite a grey day walking around The Hague, but in that day I went to an excellent museum of work by MC Escher, (check this link to see it http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escher_Museum ), it is such an amazing show and I think his obsessive attention to detail, no made how outlandish the finial image he is aiming for really inspired me with this shot.
Also another element of this image is the place that inspired it, a small off shore PRINCIPALITY OF SEALAND.
I could see this from the window of my mum and dads house in a place called Dovercourt in Essex. It's a really fascinating place and I'd encourage anyone to have a look on the web about it, go to this Wiki to get a summery of the place http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principality_of_Sealand , at the moment it is a data haven, and one of the ideas behind this image is to try and imagine and build what would happen if it became really successful and developed into a city. I used pictures of Sealand to create some of the legs that the city lays on, and also bits from other World War 2 gunning platforms that are not far out from the coast of East Anglia.
Anyway, just wanted to share some of the idea behind this image.
Going to be writing about a 60's vs. Modern Visuals light show that I was involved with for the Futuresonic Festival next.
Cheers
Andrew
