Cityscapes

Cityscapes

Artist Michael Thielen reveals the true depths of photography. Approaching each artwork as he would a traditional painting, Michael captures images from his surroundings using either a digital or video camera with the intention of combining several of these images into a final piece. Michael feels 99% of his creative process occurs at this stage as he composes through the lens, keeping a mental image of each shot’s hues, values and composition in relation to all the others he has taken. Selected raw images are then put into the computer where special software is used in an unorthodox manner to layer, manipulate and fine tune them to form a cohesive and expressive digital composition. Michael refers to these works as “art of the first cause”, knowing they could not have been done in the past since the requisite technology was not available until the present day. According to him, they are “illustrations peculiar unto the latest technology available”. Motivated by his studies of art history as well as his dual careers in fine art and the printing/graphics industries, Michaels’ complex works of layered depth and luminosity have attracted the artistic eye of many both in the US and abroad. One of Michaels’ most recent features includes a solo exhibition of his work by the Soho Gallery for Digital Art in New York City, NY in August 2013.