Art Drop #3: This Way

Go your own way with this limited release art drop.

FOUND LAYERS

Hello, Tom here.

Tom lining up his composition for our third art drop.

This month’s art drop was inadvertently leaked on my Instagram recently. After taking that shot on a whim and then sharing it I found myself going back to look at it many times, wondering how or if it could be improved and whether a reshoot was necessary (it was). As you will notice it’s a multi-layered piece, with three overlapping arrows that all point in a slightly different direction, two different shades of asphalt, and some expressive sealed cracks. There’s an element of chaos to this image, which definitely reflects the New Jersey parking lot where it was made – but I also find the textures and various elements so visually gratifying.

This Way, by Tom Bland

Prints of This Way are only available until August 7, 2023 and come in two sizes, with framed prints available to collectors in the United States.

ADDICTION TO LAYERS

Last month Diana wrote about the tension between creating work for a perceived market versus creating for yourself, and her Midsummer Hand Bouquet was an example of the latter. In a similar way it became clear to me recently that I have some kind of addiction to layers. I’ve been aware of this for some time – and it actually manifests itself in many ways, from music to food (sandwiches!) – but with my photography what has only just crystallized for me is the realization that I should be more deliberately seeking out layers that speak to me rather than relying on chance encounters. I could introduce my own layers by using various techniques, but finding something that already exists is more thrilling and satisfying, and the urgency I feel to capture these scenes when I come across them tells me that it’s in my blood.

Tom activating his creative eye to document some accidental asphalt art.

ART INCOMPATIBILITY WITH SEO

I think what’s been challenging – in this era of search engine optimization and long-tail keywords – is not really knowing how to describe these photographs, or, how to market them when they don’t fit into a genre of photography or ‘wall art’ that people tend to search for. They are photographs, but of what? Found abstracts? The layers I like to capture aren’t always abstracts per se, and I find it hard to believe many people use “found abstract” as a search term. I sometimes think that the results may even appear more like an illustration than a photograph to someone who doesn’t know exactly what they’re looking at. I’m curious to hear how you’d describe an image like this – leave us a comment below if anything comes to mind.

In the meantime the quest goes on in terms of how to succinctly describe this work and help people find it. But as with Diana’s Hand Bouquets, maybe this is an example of some art that just needs to exist somewhere, and congratulations to whoever comes across it!

Prints, both framed and unframed, of This Way will only be available until August 7, 2023.

Thanks for reading! If you know someone who would appreciate this multi-directional artwork, please forward this on to them.

If you have any questions, suggestions or feedback, we’d love to hear from you!
Until next time…

Some context: Sweltering heat, blinding sunlight, tricky shadows and an almost constant flow of traffic were factors at play for Tom in creating This Way. The arrows are just behind us in the reflection.