christopher russell: scratched photographs

‘runaway (mountains-laurel)’ by christopher russell 25” x 37” image courtesy of luis de jesus los angeles

with his most recent body of work entitled ‘runaway’, american artist christopher russell explores and investigates the ‘physical and emotional outskirts of society’ by fusing together the techniques of photography, bookmaking, writing and drawing. the highly experimental pieces involve original photographs of an abandoned quarry in ohio which have been multiplied in an abstract and kaleidoscopic pattern to serve as the canvas to the series. russell then manually scratches in images of ships, floral fabric, birds, and other objects that invoke notions of resilience and destruction.

the individual pieces find gravity in an original story written by the artist which tells a narrative of a young boy who fantasizes of running away to lake eerie in pursuit of his love of the sailing ships that went down in the great lakes during the 19th century. a hand-made book with spreads finished in a similar sketch-like technique serves as the common basis for the whole series. at once haunting and dream-like, russell’s body of work intertwines layers of narrative and images to deconstruct a rich theme in an emotional yet analytical manner. 

‘the challenge wind makes VIII’ by christopher russell 72” x 72” image courtesy of luis de jesus los angeles

‘the challenge wind makes’ by christopher russell – detail shot image courtesy of luis de jesus los angeles

exhibition view of ‘runaway’ at luis de jesus los angeles image courtesy of luis de jesus los angeles

a page from ‘runaway’ by christopher russell 24” x 18” image courtesy of luis de jesus los angeles

a page from ‘runaway’ by christopher russell 24” x 18” image courtesy of luis de jesus los angeles

‘runaway (ghost ship wreck)’ by christopher russell 25” x 37” image courtesy of luis de jesus los angeles

‘runaway (monster ship) by christopher russell 37” x 52” image courtesy of luis de jesus los angeles

exhibition view of ‘runaway’ image courtesy of luis de jesus los angeles

image courtesy of luis de jesus los angeles