This piece was created with Spanish artist Antonyo Marest who is based between Madrid and Miami. His works often reflect the influence of Art Deco and the Memphis design movement. Vibrant, contrasting colours dominate his palette, with bright blues, yellows, pinks, and blacks creating a lively and engaging visual experience. Marest's work exudes a sense of modernity while drawing on mid-20th-century aesthetics, blending contemporary techniques with a nod to architectural and cultural nostalgia.
I thought Antonyo’s vivid colours would be the perfect match to brighten up this brutalist dam - the 225 metre Diga di Luzzone in Ticino, Switzerland. On my first visit in March 2022 the water was frozen, and I returned to photograph our collaboration in summer to take advantage of the dammed lake’s deep green.
Information about Impossible Street Art
In this project my starting point was to imagine if street artists could work on any surface, not restricted by scale, accessibility, safety or rules. By challenging these conventions I explore the tensions between artistic expression and the restrictions imposed by social norms and governments. I have photographed landscapes that would be amazing for a street artist to paint, but are impossible to paint for real, because they're too big or inaccessible.
I have chosen some of my favourite street artists and given them large photographic prints, which they have painted to create original, hand-made artworks with no digital manipulation.
I then re-shoot each artwork on an easel in its original location, creating captivating windows into a parallel universe where street artists have been given free rein.
These images are created for real, not with CGI or AI.
