Today we share the work of Robert & Shana ParkeHarrison and Julie Blackmon. The long represented artists combine reality and fantasy in their staged photographs to invite us into their special world. Come and get lost with us at booth B300 in their unique imagery.

Robert & Shana ParkeHarrison

The husband and wife duo gained recognition for their collaborative works that presented constructed and choreographed scenarios about mans effect on the landscape. More than twenty years later, the artists are still dedicated to the environment, showing us the power of nature, and the effect our actions have on it. By creating environments specifically to photograph, the artists address issues about the earth and our responsibility to heal the damage we’ve created, while investigating the human condition. This ideology has remained a constant, and is why they are so greatly admired.

Their newest series, Precipice, combines their love of theater and performance. In each image, we see a man bearing witness to his own desires and struggles. This can be seen time and again in the nine pieces in this series. In Downpour, 2015  we see a man balanced on a ladder, creating the sky, only to lose grip on his tools which fall to the ground. In all of these majestic photographs, the environment is larger than man, reminding the viewer that we need to listen, pay attention and care for our surroundings. As the artists state:

Rich colors and surrealistic imagery merge to reveal the poetic roots of the works on display.  The use of color is intentional but abstract; proportion and space are compositional rather than natural; movement is blurred; objects and people juxtaposed as if by chance in a visual improvisation that unfolds choreographically.  At once formally arresting and immeasurably loaded with sensations—this work attempts to provide powerful impact both visually and viscerally.”  – Robert & Shana ParkeHarrison

Watch this Artist Talk with Robert & Shana ParkeHarrison discussing their latest series Precipice.

 

Julie Blackmon

Julie Blackmon’s images of her children, nieces, nephews and friends, have transfixed the art world. Blackmon, herself the oldest of nine children, balances her role as a mother of three and an artist, referencing family life and the circumstances it creates. Chaos, disorder, fantasies, social gatherings, game playing, all of these scenarios continue to dominate Blackmon’s work, which we first witnessed in her series, Domestic Vacations. Elegance, triumphs, dangers and solace mix with fantasy, where nothing is quite as it seems. Like Alice in her wonderland, Blackmon’s children appear in reality and fantasy, engrossed in their fictitious worlds.

 We live in a culture where we are both ‘child-centered’ and ‘self-obsessed’. As an artist and as a mother, I believe life’s most poignant moments come from the ability to fuse fantasy and reality: to see the mythic amidst the chaos.” – Julie Blackmon

 

Influenced by Jan Steen and 17th c. Dutch paintings, Blackmon also credits Edward Gorey, Tim Burton and Federico Fellini, who stated, “the things that are most real to me are the ones that I invented…even lies are interesting, eloquent and revealing, just as much as what is considered the truth.” By looking at her family through the lens of fiction, Blackmon reveals her own truth and one that seems to resonate with audiences’ worldwide.

To see more images by Robert & Shana ParkeHarrison and Julie Blackmon, visit our website.

The last day of Art Miami is approaching, but you still have time to visit our booth B300. We are looking forward to seeing you this weekend.

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