Ryan Gander is an artist born in Chester, United Kingdom, in 1976 and is an artist I have recently discovered through one of his images that specifically stood out to me more than his others. In 1999 he graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University with a First Class degree in Interactive Art, and has been successful as an artist, winning the DENA Foundation Art Award in 2007, and the Paul Hamlyn Award in 2008, to highlight just a few of his accomplishments. He currently works mainly in London and Amsterdam.
The piece above is one of his pieces that really stood out to me when I was searching for more artist influence that I can talk about and be aware of as I create my own work. What really caught my attention in this photograph is the simplistic nature to both composition, and the so-called “rules to photography”. His piece does not follow the rules in technical sense, with the pole sticking out of the main focus’s head, as well as having a semi-distracting background. However, with this being acknowledged, I feel as if Ryan Gander purposefully knew about these things, and was aware of what he was doing when he pushed the button. It’s not that he is unaware of some technical aspects that were not edited or taken care of, it’s that the focus is on the person in the middle, his expression.
To explain this, as most of you know, my work has to do with bleeding of color from my person, bleeding out to the background. Ryan Gander’s piece does that as well, only metaphorical, rather than visual. He is not going to ‘pretty up’ a photograph that speaks with the main focus, and how the world is viewed through that person. In my opinion, the man in the piece is the main focus, and by his face and body language, life has hurt him, and he is searching, therefore, why should the background be perfect, clean, and obey the ‘rules’. The world of photography, is partially to picture life, as is, with all of its blemishes, because this world is not perfect, and not following the rules has everything to do with the story behind this work.
As for the actual imagery, I can relate, because it honestly looks like a representation of me, and what I feel inside. I think that his piece communicates very strong towards anyone who has had an experience that shakes the pillars that each of us build our lives on, and I think that it speaks to everyone in some aspect.
http://www.artnet.com/artwork/425766663/111910/ryan-gander-man-on-a-bridge.html
