Quick-fire questions with Canadian photographer, Alex Lysakowski

 

Surreal artworks are in a class of their own. Bending reality and logical in such unique ways, they're really expressive and never fail to be intriguing. So we're really excited to be releasing 3 prints with Alex that capture surrealism so well. Taken from his on-going series Antistructure, Alex photographs and manipulates this body of work, focusing on consumption and over production through exaggerated architectural forms within banal spaces

 

Sending some quick-fire questions his way, it was great to hear what it takes to create artworks like this

Tell us a little bit about yourself

I am a photographer from Missisauga, Ontario Canada. My work focuses on industrial and architectural subject matter. I have had work featured in a series of online, print and gallery settings including Vice Magazine, Aesthetica and Applied Arts along to name a few.

Tell us about you print series Antistructure

The farcical nature of the manipulated structures creates a surreal world of absurdity in an otherwise mundane landscape eluding to an environment beyond the realm of any real architectural forms but still preserving the potential for their existence to comment and contrast modern civilizations blind eye to overconsumption and mass consumerism.

What do your mornings look like?

Coffee and stretching.

When did you first discover art? or realise you wanted to pursue a creative outlet?

My grandmother was my main influence when it came to visual arts; she always encouraged my artistic endeavours from when I was very young. She taught me the technical fundamentals when it came to illustration and painting mediums, along with the theoretical aspects of fine art, with day trips to museums and galleries.

How would you describe your artwork?

My personal work explores the transitional spaces between reality and fiction through photo manipulation, creating a world of the uncanny and absurd.

Are there any subjects or themes you are interested in? or represented in your work?

Industrial landscapes.

What is your process?

Photoshop is a big part of my process and is a key tool in the creation of most of my photo manipulation work. The photographic aspect of my work involved a lot of location scouting and timing.

How do you carry out your location scouting?

I usually take some time to go for drives around industrial areas I scout using google earth; I revisit locations multiple times depending on the environmental factors. Other times I chance upon places and hopefully I have my camera gear with me.

What do you love most and why, the photography or photo manipulation? ...or both

Both the photo and the post production are key factors in my work. I strive to produce clean images in camera and use photoshop to enhance or distort the reality I capture. The marriage of the two is what causes the intersection of the real and the uncanny.

What do you need in order to create your work?

Techno

What do you find most daunting, challenging, or frustrating about what you do?

I have to find what I shoot; it's a game of chance for the most part.