Photomanipulation nominee

This image began with the capture of a digital image of a section of naturally occurring texture on a rock surface in the Cowichan Valley on Southern Vancouver Island.

The image then has it’s colour and contrast adjusted for dramatic effect, but the original textured surface remains.

A simple mirror effect follows, and the patterns that arise from this are explored to discover expressive possibilities.

The resulting image often seems to depart from it’s original source in the outer World and begin acting as a portal to the viewer’s inner World, inviting a wide range of exotic themes from the sacred to the profane from the viewer’s mind (due, in part, to a phenomenon known as pareidolia).

Dorian Melton

Born: 1954, Vancouver, B.C., Canada
Currently resides in the Cowichan Valley, Vancouver Island, B.C., Canada.

Education:
1979-81, Communication Design, Capilano College
1986-87, Illustration, Ontario College of Art

Exhibitions:
Solo: Phoenix Coastal Art Gallery, Steveston, B.C., Dec. 6, 2002
Group: Shibui Art Gallery, Duncan, B.C., Dec. 2018
Solo: Bay-Ou Gallery, Cowichan Bay, B.C., Dec. 2018

Artist’s statement:
I am currently exploring the expressive potential of naturally occurring textures in the geological formations in my local environment through the medium of manipulated digital photography.

The resulting image often seems to depart from it’s original source in the outer World and begin acting as a portal to the viewer’s inner World, inviting a wide range of exotic themes from the sacred to the profane from the viewer’s mind (due, in part, to a phenomenon known as pareidolia).

The phenomenon of pareidolia (mental constuction of meaning from random pattern) is a window on the inner workings of the viewer’s mind and can be triggered by the simple device of applying a mirror effect to a random texture.