camouflage

i love that people are starting to send me great tips of artists to feature! my friend hugh emailed me this morning about Desiree Palmen, saying "do you know her stuff? talk about anti-portraiture..." i'd never seen her work before, but i love it.

and i agree that this Dutch artist's "Camouflage" work (see top image) is a form anti-portraiture, purely questioning the subject and its relationship to the environment—while making cool trompe l'oeil scenarios.

her more recent work, while exploring the same themes, adds something even more complex. her project "Old City Suit / surveillance camera project" is shot in Jerusalem, and uses the camouflage of her main subject to critique the emergence of a global surveillance state. she's also interested in the effect of surveillance on the average citizen, and the desire to disappear.

i don't know much about the project yet, but the images seem to be shot from the location of different surveillance cameras around Jerusalem. they are interesting and smart—and i definitely want to learn more. thanks hugh!