Old School Art & Technology Collide To Create Digital Collages

It must be a double-edged sword to be an artist or musician in today’s world. As technology advances, there are constantly more and more tools and applications created that can help enhance and add a new level to your artistry. However, when you use and experiment with those tools, there will always be that group of people who criticize you and accuse you of “selling out” to technology and not being true to your craft. What do you do in that situation? I have no idea.

Deborah Oropallo, an artist from San Francisco, is one of those artists who has gotten a lot of criticism. She’s been around for a while, so she has some old-school fans who have given her a lot of slack for using the computer in her artwork in the past several years. Some of the stuff I’ve read online is really harsh. However, I disagree. I love these “paintings” that are called “digital collages.” I’ve never seen anything like these before, and the originality and uniqueness in each one definitely makes them interesting to look at.

Deborah says, “I do not want to just repaint an illustration of what the computer can do, but to push the pixels themselves as paint, and to layer imagery and veils to create depth and volume.” These images are part of a collection called the “Wild Wild West Show,” which combines old-fashioned cowgirl pictures enhanced with new digital technology. Aside from the fact that clowns in general freak me out, I really like these! Nice!

[via Triangulation Blog, Wirtz Gallery]