Blog Entry #1

The digital artist I'd like to highlight is James Wolf Strehle.  He creates digital imagery with very interesting sceneries with an epic feel to them.  Below I will highlight three images of his.

The first is titled "The twisted room"  It is in essence a view inside of a young boy's room, presumably late at night during perhaps a long video-game-playing marathon.  The denotations are a somewhat scattered and messy room, typical of a boy's room.  In the foreground we see a weary, zombified young boy playing video games that has it seems either been possessed, or is just in dire need of sleep.  In the background, through a window of the room we see a collection of monsters struggling against each other and the glass of the window to break into the room.  Some of the connotations of this imagery are that the atmosphere of the room is a metaphor for the ideas or state of the boy's mind.  Perhaps the room being twisted highlights the twisted state of the boys mind.  Maybe the connotation is that despite the typical scene of a boy playing video games, with this particular boy there is something sinister brewing beneath the surface "struggling to break through".  Or perhaps the imagery intends to portray video games as a something that twists the minds of children, and in this case the denotation of monsters in the window and a zombie-like child are references to the imagery the boy is seeing on his television screen.  As a digital artist, I would guess that actually Strehle could be simply showing how certain art, entertainment, etc. are very immersive, and therefore the imagery the boy sees onscreen pulls him into that world so completely the connotation is that the universe of the game has come to the boy's room.

This next image is titled "In search of humans".  The image denotes a larger than life, human-looking figure in the middle of the image, standing in a yard or garden outside of a house.  In the foreground, from within the grass at ground level we see a small, oddly-dressed, miniature, human-like creature observing the large figure in the background.  The impending angle and stature of the human has a connotation of the smaller creature likely fearing or watching with caution.  The title's reference to a search for humans creates a connotation of some fantasy or epic science-fiction adventure, which is supported by the odd futuristic clothing of the smaller figure.  The perspective being focused from the ground has a connotation of the viewer identifying with the smaller figure, giving the image a powerful, emotional feeling similar to that of curiosity or even excitement on the part of the other-worldy creature as you are along for whatever journey he or she has embarked upon.

Source:  http://www.cromoart.de/wordpress/2010/12/external-design-inspiration-the-art-of-james-wolf-strehle/
Jamie Strehle Gallery