“Mandalas,” or “Prismatic Visions,” are a series of works created by Bart Ross. The works were exhibited on September 11, 2021, in La Mancha Gallery (La Mancha Gallery, n.d.). The mandala project was started in 2009 and aimed to change the paradigm of photographing reality. In his childhood, Bart Ross was inspired by the fact that a camera can distort the image of the world and present it in a new, unpredictable form. Ross entered San Francisco State University, the best art photography school in the U.S. Being a mecca for art photography, the university became the starting platform for young artists.
“Mandalas” are meditative and addictive since symmetry and patterns are pleasant for human perception. The way the spectator composes the image shifts from the golden thirds to the edges with a tilted horizon. Thus, these works reveal something contrary to what people are usually taught during interaction with images. As for the presentation, “Mandalas” work in the best way in a conventional size, as they were exhibited in LaGrange Art Museum.
The author defines himself as a person who learns his whole life. He sees himself as the one who is willing to explore how deep is the rabbit hole (Ross, 2021). He enjoys the difference between the picture that he saw in reality and its final look in the photograph. In his attempt to look at reality from a different angle, he follows his curiosity. “Mandalas” present a synergy of a plainly realistic view and excessive distortion of the image. It reflects reality, at the same time revealing its new edges and sides, thus serving one of the purposes of art.
References
La Mancha Gallery (n.d.). Events page. Web.
Ross, B. (2021). Art photography. Web.