Press Release
Silver A' Design Award in Photography and Photo Manipulation Design Goes to I am Nesia Exhibition Series by Chris Slabber
Chris Slabber recognized for photography and photo manipulation design by the international grand jury of the 2020 - 2021 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 23, 2021 /DesignNewswire/ I am Nesia Exhibition Series by Chris Slabber has been granted the Silver A' Design Award in the Photography and Photo Manipulation Design category, A' Design Award & Competition has announced. The recognition forms part of the 2020 - 2021 A' Design Award & Competition and was determined through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who scored anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
About the Silver A' Design Award
The Silver A' Design Award celebrates top-tier designs that embody excellence and innovation. This award acknowledges creations that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also highly functional, reflecting the designer's deep understanding and skill. Silver A' Design Award recipients are recognized for their contribution to raising industry standards and advancing the practice of design. Their work often incorporates original innovations and elicits a strong emotional response, making a notable impact on the improvement of everyday life.
More About I am Nesia Exhibition Series
I am Nesia is a photography series about the effects of the 2020 lockdown on the human spirit. Each image was made by turning the lens focus in the wrong direction, so that landscapes became soft fields of colour that resemble watercolour paintings. A dark figure was then added to each scene as a metaphor for fear and anxiety, and a grain texture completes the compositions. The series is produced as large format light boxes of 1200 by 2000 millimetres. The intent is to record a period of uncertainty and to show that people can adapt and prevail.
About Chris Slabber
Growing up in the South Africa, I was influenced from an early age by humble surroundings. It was here where I developed my imagination that would eventually fuel my Surrealistic style. Mostly known for my Photography and manipulation techniques, I like to focus on the subconscious. I want the viewer too finish each piece inside his/her mind. This results in an individualistic experience. It should be an inward journey, manifested as an emotional experience.
Award Record
Chris Slabber is a winner of 9 A' Design Awards, including this recognition. The awards span the editions from 2013 - 2014 to 2020 - 2021 of the A' Design Award & Competition.
About the A' Photography and Photo Manipulation Design Award
The A' Photography Design Award is an international photography competition recognizing good photographic creations by best photographers worldwide. The competition is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to photographers, photojournalists, advertising agencies and digital artists from all countries. Entries typically include portraits, landscapes, still lifes, photojournalism, fashion shots and architectural images. Awarded photography designs are published at https://dezigners.org/design-category/photography
About A' Design Award & Competition
A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade organized annually since 2008. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The A' Design Award has a philanthropic mission to advance society through good design by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Entries are peer reviewed and anonymously evaluated by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. The A' Design Prize granted to eligible laureates includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, the upload of a work and the preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. Further information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://dezigners.org/123356
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/123356
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!123356
- Laureate Profile: https://dezigners.org/d/135028
- Further Information from the Laureate: http://bit.ly/3qy4yxU
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
###
Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- I am Nesia Exhibition Series
- Function
- Exhibition Series
- Category
- Photography and Photo Manipulation Design
- Discipline
- Communication Design
- Industry
- Arts and Entertainment
- Colors
- Black, Dark Slate Gray, Silver, Light Gray and Dim Gray
- Images
- 5
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Chris Slabber
- Country
- South Africa
- Recognition
- Silver A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2020 - 2021
- Design ID
- #123356
Credits
- Image Credits
- Photographer Chris Slabber, Manipulation Chris Slabber, 2020
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- This series of images is an interpretation of the effects that the recent lockdown had on the human spirit. It documents how loneliness effected human behaviour. The big uncertainty produced by the pandemic has seen a spike in anxiety and depression on a global scale. There was a blanket of fear draped across society. This is represented by the out of focus images and emphasised by the dark figure looming in the background.
- Inspiration
- The moment of inspiration came when trying to photograph a moth against a dirty window. The actual photo of the moth didn't look great, but the out of focus background really evoked emotion. Using this as inspiration, I photographed various landscapes by opening up the aperture and cranking the focus all the way in the wrong direction. The end result was a photograph that looked like a blurry water colour painting. Instead of landscape photography, the exercise became colours cape photography.
- Research
- To create these colour scapes I had to shift my focus from looking at landscapes in terms of foreground, middle ground and background. Instead the I had to find colour scapes. This meant that the compositions were dictated by the right balance of colours within the viewfinder. The end result should be a completely abstract interpretation of the actual landscapes. Each image should have its own emotional value, achieved by the colour palettes. This started to incorporate colour theory on a psychological level. Once produced as a light box, the work will reach a higher level of engagement on an emotional and visual level.
- Challenge
- The biggest challenge was to make a rather ominous theme come across as aesthetically pleasing. This was resolved by using well balanced colour palettes along with the right composition for each image. In most of the images there is a lot of sky. This gives the idea of space or the unknown. The dark figure is a metaphor for the fear and anxiety aspect of the lockdown, but this poses the question to the viewer. Will you run in fear or will you walk towards the figure and engage with your fear? To finish off the work, the light box will create movement and dynamics in the compositions.
- Realization and Technology
- The idea was to create water colour scapes using photography. This was achieved by turning the focus completely in the wrong direction in order to manipulate pixels. While looking through the viewfinder, the idea was to find a good composition of colours instead of background, foreground and background elements. Afterwards the dark figure was inserted into the selected colour scapes in photoshop. Each piece was then finished with a grain texture to boost the emotional value of the pieces.
- Operation and Interaction
- The series was created as a reminder of the 2020 lockdown during the Covid 19 pandemic. The images is firstly meant to remind us of how uncertain our future became in a matter of months. It is a reminder of the fear felt on a global scale. Most important, it is there to remind us that we can prevail and adapt in order to survive and ultimately overcome the damage done by the pandemic. So even though the images might come across as dark, they are in fact a celebration of the human spirit.
- Project Duration and Location
- The was created in June 2020 during hard lockdown. I had to sneak out during curfew to take the photos.
- Specifications
- The end product will be produced as large format light boxes. Width 1200mm x Height 2000mm. The light box will enhance the emotional value of the pieces.
- Keywords
- colour scapes, landscape photography, lockdown, pandemic, out of focus, fear, challenge,
