Artist analysis- Zac Smith

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Artist Analysis – Zak Smith

“...something is stirring: at first no more than refraction, as if there were a source of heat directly in front of the empty chair...Is this really Keith, her father? ”

The intricate, gloomy and thought-provoking piece displayed above was created by the alternative artist Zak Smith. He has successfully attempted to address the universal theme of fear and has also excellently portrayed the inquisitive nature of humans. The subject matter consists of a suggestive male figure located in an ordinary living room. The figure seems to be somewhat exhausted as though returning home from a difficult journey. Zak Smith created the image with inspiration from a quotation found in Thomas Pynchon’s “Gravity’s Rainbow”. It was his intention to display in great detail the literary prose found within its pages and due to this it portrays a deep sense of emotion and confusion as the young girl believes her father may have returned. It addresses fundamental social issues that many unfortunately encounter during their lifetimes. Many family members seem lost as their relationship ends in divorce or their choice of career takes them to war. This outstanding piece may depict how we long for their return. However, there may be many alternative interpretations. Zak Smith relies heavily on Pynchon’s vivid use of description and literary devices in his work to create images which entirely portray the meaning of their quotes. His pieces and subject matters remain distorted and abstract to display his own unusual techniques and methods and allow for viewers imaginations to create their own interpretations. The figure may have been created purposely obscure to emphasize how the daughter may just be having a hallucination brought on by distress and grief and her father isn’t actually present. The meaning and content of the work is not immediately apparent as the image is obscure and the quotation has to be fully understood. Once this is done, the meaning becomes fairly simple. I believe an action is about to occur in this image as the daughter greets her father.

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Zak Smith designed this image with his own interpretation of the quotation constantly in mind. As the image successfully displays the imagery in the quote, I believe the design is in keeping with the content. Smith hasn’t made use of any colours and instead has only incorporated black and white into his image. These contrast significantly, emphasizing the subject matter and creating essential tone and shading. The dominate black is eye-catching and vivid and is used effectively to create thick bold lines and include an exquisite amount of minor detailing. Smith’s illustration consists of several organic forms creating intricately detailed ...

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