spectacular detail in alexander james's underwater photography · spectacular detail in...
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BY TABISH KHAN
LAST EDITED 65 MONTHS AGO
Spectacular Detail In Alexander James'sUnderwater Photography
Image © 2000 - 2013 Alexander James Distil Ennui Studio™. www.DistilEnnui.com.
Glass, 2012 by Alexander James. Image © 2000 - 2013 Alexander James Distil Ennui Studio™
Untitled 2596, 2012 by Alexander James. Image © 2000 - 2013 Alexander James Distil Ennui Studio™
Morpho Amathonte 0005, 2012 by Alexander James. Image © 2000 - 2013 Alexander James Distil Ennui Studio™
At first glance these works look like they could pass for 16th century still life paintings, yet
they are photographs and Alexander James goes to great lengths to create the perfect
work in astonishing detail.
James took us through the technique of how these works are created and it's truly
astounding. All of the tableaux are assembled within giant tanks of water, ripples are then
created on the surface with paintbrushes and the work is immortalised in a photograph. It's
a remarkably complex and precise process that can take months of set-up just to produce a
single photograph - often only a single snapshot will be taken before the assemblage is
destroyed.
The butterflies featured are bred by the artist, placed in a state of suspended animation
and then delicately placed in the water so it appears as if they're resting on a flower or
fluttering around them. Once removed from the water, they will spring back to life unfazed
and ready to create the next generation for James to photograph.
Even the flowers are left suspended in water for days so that their pigment slowly leaches
away providing for a clearer view of the vessels within the petals, and resulting in a glass-
Isis Bound, 2011 by Alexander James. Image © 2000 - 2013 Alexander James Distil Ennui Studio™
like ethereal feel to them.
Our favourite work features a fox wrapped around a candelabra made semi-transparent by
the rippling water while its candles are nearly burnt out. This tableau of impermanence is
bolstered by the fox sporting a cheeky grin as if it's still alive and captures a transient
moment in between life and death.
James told us that the "more he blurs the boundaries, the more people want to explore"
and we're in no doubt that visitors will gaze in wonderment as they try to pick out the
subtle intricacies in each work.
Alexander James: Intersection is on display at The Studio Building, 21 Evesham Street, W11 4AJ
until 24 May. Admission is free.
Last Updated 25 April 2013
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