The Artwork of Jamie Gannon
Defamiliarized Perspectives and Distributed Attention
When you become accustomed to the things around you they stop seeming extraordinary. I attempt to make architecture and objects 'unfamiliar,' to make forms oddly beautiful, and to increase the duration of a viewer's perception. The process of perception is an interesting aesthetic end in itself and deserves to be prolonged. If we start to examine the general laws of perception we see that as perception becomes habitual, it becomes automatic. Seeing common things in unfamiliar and strange ways allows us fresh perspectives and helps us see the world in new and greater detail.
Documenting “place” is another aspect of my work that is very important. The precise locations provided with each work add an element of reality that brings into focus the credibility of the original photographs as a recorded archive. Many of the structures I look for are endangered as time inevitably progresses and their utility wanes. Capturing these buildings as completely as possible from all sides is a concerted effort. Presenting the art derived from the original source photos with two sides mirrored gives the viewer an intentionally unfamiliar viewpoint. At the same time the viewer, with prolonged attention, is informed in a way that a single-sided depiction could never provide.
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Jamie Gannon works and lives in Chicago, Illinois.
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