Oliver Wasow

Oliver Wasow is a photographer known for his digital manipulations of both studio-produced images, and found source materials. In Christian Paul's reading, his landscapes such as "Cape Cod" provided an example of how digital artists present an enhanced and other-worldly reality through their work. 

Cape Cod, 2001, Oliver Wasow

Mt. Ranier, Washington, 1997, Oliver Wasow

Wasow's studio photography is meant to be very personal, but as a digital artist he recognizes the collaborative nature that comes with digital media. In addition to his studio work, he is very active on sites such as Pinterest and Facebook, where he frequently shares photographs that he has found and categorized for his viewers. There are photographs of parties,

Untitled, "Parties" category (Pinterest)

of sleepers,

Untitled, "Sleepers" category, Pinterest

and creepers.

Untitled, "Scary" category, Pinterest

Contrary to his studio work, there is no distinct internal process behind these found images, since any context that was once associated with them is long gone. The images spark all sorts of discussion among the people who follow Wasow, ranging from technical examinations of whether the image has been manipulated and to what extent, to musings about the stories behind the image and where they could have come from.  

Wasow keeps his studio work and his found-image postings distinct from each other by restricting photographs of people to his image sources. They are never featured in his original works. To Wasow, featuring people in his studio images limits what can be expressed through the images by attaching too much emotional specificity to them. As a result, he compiles unique images to combine and create his landscapes that are meant reflect his own personal ideas and feelings. I think that forcing himself to use different images is his studio work's greatest strength- his photographs have a wide variety of compositions and colors, and the subject matter conveys energy and feeling in a way that is definitely original compared to simply photographing a model expressing a certain emotion.

Both sides of Wasow's work are very successful in representing the strengths of digital media. There is the obvious skill with which he uses technology to create his studio images- the way in which his photographs are seamlessly manipulated and combined is what allows the finished piece to have its surreal qualities. Posting his found images on social media pages and encouraging discussion over them also gives a universal, collaborative feel to the images that was addressed in class. Finally, although his studio work and what he posts on social media are distinct from each other in terms of subject matter, they are both effective at engaging emotion and feeling in both the artist and the viewer.

Balloon and Stream, 2010, Oliver Wasow

Interview with Oliver Wasow:

Harnish, Tracey. (2013). Social Media and the Unknown Artist. from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tracey-harnish/social-media-and-the-unknown-artist_b_3249768.html#slide=2431757