Photography is more than a medium for factual communication of ideas.  It is a creative art.

- Ansel Adams
 

For half a century photography has been the "art form" of the untalented.
Obviously some pictures are more satisfactory than others, but where is credit due?
To the designer of the camera?  To the finger on the button?  To the law of averages?

- Gore Vidal
 

Other works of Skoglund's not shown here but which can be found on her site include "Raining Popcorn," "Walking on Eggshells" (which used 50,000 real eggshells), "At the Shore" (using french fries and Barbie dolls), "Atomic Love" (using furniture coated with raisins), "Body Limits" (everything is coated with bacon), "Spirituality in the Flesh" (furniture coated with ground beef), "Germs Are Everywhere" (items studded with chewed gum) - and lots more.  Be warned - each photograph on her site is approximately 2 meg and required a Flash plugin.

Fox Games

FOX GAMES, © 1989 Sandy Skoglund
cibachrome color photograph; approx. image area 46 1/4" X 63"
Sculpted epoxy resin foxes and live models

Gathering Paradise

GATHERING PARADISE, © 1991 Sandy Skoglund
cibachrome color photograph; approx. image area 47 1/4" X 61"
Artificial trees and bushes, artificial patio floor, lawn furniture, sculpted epoxy resin squirrels and live models.

Picnic on Wine

PICNIC ON WINE ©2003 Sandy Skoglund
pigmented inkset print; approx. image area: 42"H x 153"L
4000 wine glasses filled with red liquid, artificial grass-covered sculptures and live models.

See also (if you didn't already):

Blind Green Cats and Purple Dogs (the previous page in this section) - Part 1 pf Sandy Skoglund's work (contains some biographical information)

I'm certainly no professional artist but that doesn't stop me from having opinions.  I was struck by the novelty of Skoglund's approach - however it also seemed to me that she got stuck overlong in a "period", repeating similar ideas perhaps too once or twice too often.  Another thing I can't help but wonder is if, in the age of digital cameras and excellent editing programs, much of the tedious work she spends months doing by hand couldn't be supplied with Adobe Photoshop and 3D Studio Max (or similar combinations).  Perhaps these types of concepts need to be brought into the digital age?  I wonder if she would become even more creative if not slowed down so by the "installation" side of the process...

For photos of the earth and moon, stained glass, sunsets on Wellington Harbour, Lady Fair, Civic Square, the old mill, the Whippany River, historical houses, Lake Parsippany and more clicking the "Up" button below takes you to the Index page for this Photographs section.