Peter Watson Biography

 

 

From my earliest experience in photography at technical college my relationship to and understanding of photography in all its facets developed quickly through using different cameras, techniques and darkroom techniques.
With a long history in the arts and design that spreads across many different mediums, there has always been a strong connection between design and photography for me.
This informs my art in the present – my concentration on the abstract in this new digital media is the thing that excites me.
My whole energy and thrust is in exploring the abstract. That’s the thing that really turns me on.

I love the character of electronics – the aberrations, the evolving element of exploring technology and pushing it’s limits. Similar to techno and electro music, the camera’s interpretation is an electronic visual impression of my subject matter – an electro impressionism of sorts. I am inspired by the colour and excitement of the locations I photograph (currently absorbed in New York City) – capturing the feeling in that moment, allowing people to experience modern cities in this electro impressionistic style. I am very comfortable with the art of abstract digital photography. My images are NOT computer-generated – the original images are always created using the camera’s technology.

I have complete control of the set-up and subject matter (which I devote a lot of time to), my process is then about pushing the limits of the camera’s technology; creating chaos inside the camera. The part I enjoy the most is knowing that the camera will return an interpretation and that this exact outcome can never be presumed.
For me the camera is similar to holding a paint brush, and I’m painting with the pixels, with the electronic impulses in the camera; it’s a connected purity between electronics and humans, where there is an emotional result from this connection. I’ve picked a camera that’s suited perfectly for this – a pure fine-art 46 mega-pixel camera for portrait photography – a beautiful lens and no extra gadgetry.

I relate very closely to composers in the medium of electronic music, who produce a feeling from electronic devices. I feel that I also produce a feeling from electronic devices, in a visual format. Like the Impressionists who initiated new interpretations, I feel my images represent similarly, being an electro impression of the world, captured in that moment by the camera and my sensibilities.

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