Figments of Imagination
by Jeffrey Zalles
Jeffrey Zalles, Deep Dive, abstract digital triptych on metal, 20” x 18”
June 14 – July 26, 2024
It starts with a blank screen.
I create and transform layer upon layer of colorful digital brush strokes and elements of photographs. If you look closely, you might see broken wires hanging from a pole in Valparaiso, Chile. Or graffiti on the side of a hiking trail bridge on Mt. Tam. If I’m lucky, my strokes and manipulations will become a finished work. Often, however, my first go-around won’t make the cut and will be placed in my virtual closet, where it is destined to become just another layer to be used in creating a new image. If you consider the layers in the images that become layers themselves, a finished work can consist of elements blended from as many as fifty unique tiers, one atop another.
The process goes on and on. And then, suddenly, with one brushstroke, one click of my mouse, one transparency adjustment – Voilà! That’s it!
What are the messages these collections of layers convey? I’ll leave that to your imagination.
zallesdesign.com
IG: @jeffreyzalles
Biography:
Jeffrey Zalles, an artist by accident.
Working as a website designer, a client asked me to create a logo for her organization. I politely declined. Later, I thought about how nice it would be to have that skill, so I downloaded a sophisticated digital art application like Photoshop. After watching four hours of videos, I began to practice what I had learned.
One day, my wife Jools walked into my office, looked at my monitor and said: “That’s really cool. Did you do that?” And thus, my career as an abstract digital artist began.
I love working on digital platforms. The opportunities to manipulate shape and color are endless. I create layers upon layers, filled with colors and textures, that I then blend to provide unique and personalized visual effects. Most of my designs are comprised of dozens of layers, each a creation of its own.
Having lived my years as a fervent consumer of art, I am now delighted to call myself an artist. I hope you enjoy my work.