How people with myopia see the world: 15 incredible oil paintings by Philip Barlow
To understand the reality that surrounds us better, sometimes it is useful to look at it with different eyes. Nothing could be more true for the South African artist Philip Barlow, who has chosen a particular perspective: that of people with myopia problems.
If you are part of this group, just take off your glasses for a moment to understand what Barlow means; otherwise these oil paintings of the South African artist will open your eyes to the blurred world, but also surreal and suggestive of myopic.
Graduated in 1990 in Graphic Fine Art at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, Philip decides to discover the Old Continent: between 1991 and 1994 he developed his style devoting himself to murals, portraits in pastel and charcoal, watercolor drawings, pen and ink.
“Although I work within a long tradition of landscape painting,” says Philip, “my depiction of the ‘seen’ landscape is simply a vehicle through which I navigate the territory of another nature. A landscape less ordinary; where the line between the physical and the spiritual realm has seemingly been removed. However, these scenarios are not intended to be of a surreal nature. Hopefully, they will seem curiously familiar and convincingly real.”
If landscapes are at the heart of Barlow’s drawings, they are not desert: in many cases they can even be crowded with people.
“Figures in the landscape serve as couriers and reflectors of the light that falls on them. Warmed by the brightness, it is my hope that they become more beautiful. For me, light is the last subject because it embodies the apex of all reality.”
In an era of high definition and hyper-realism, Barlow’s style stands out in contrast, forcing the viewer to pause for longer, more carefully, and even constructively.
In fact, “not all information is provided, and this therefore allows the viewer the opportunity to create their own stories and meanings.”
Preview: instagram.com/philipbarlow
