3rd place
bronze star award
Claire Luxton
united kingdom
title
Botanica
Often triggered by something she has read, Luxton’s work delves into a variety of histories. Most of her projects start with an extensive research period where she looks for literary, artistic, botanical, animalistic and musical references, as well as exploring colour, texture, and objects. Using her own human features — eyes, nose, lips and hands — as a base for her compositions, she constructs otherworldly narratives, populated by butterflies, flowers and clouds. Inspired by Italian and Northern Renaissance portraits, all the components of her images play with classical symbolism. A way to interpret her portraits is through her carefully crafted titles and accompanying poems, such as Unravel, 2023.
Luxton performs detailed narratives for the camera. Her images first exist as a sculpted set, where the model, herself, shape-shifts through cosmetics, props and light. And all ornamentations complement each other. An immersive quality, or element, is achieved thanks to post-production digital technology, leaving the viewer wondering if they are looking at a painting or photography. Luxton states that she “creates canvases thanks to photography”. More recently, as a way
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entry description
Botanica is a ten-part self-portrait series uniquely combining the human body, flowers, water, ink, and resin to create meticulously composed ecosystems installations as if seen through a microscopic lens. Each ‘sculptural floral narrative’, examines the fine line between creation and destruction, life and death, seducing the viewer with beauty, intrigue, and uncertainty. The collection involved over 500 fresh, dried and decomposing flowers, shot through load-bearing perspex suspended on a 6ft hollow bench.about the photographer
At the junction of theatre, performance, photography, and technology, Claire Luxton explores the art of self-representation. Luxton started her education focusing on photography, however, she felt constrained by the limits of medium-specificity. At that time, she started shaping her visual language and quickly realised that her preferred source material was her own physicality. Her body became the most appropriate tool to explore emotions, affections and concerns. At the centre of her practice lies her own vulnerability as a way to connect with viewers. By assuming different disguises and utilising self-portraiture as a powerful medium, Luxton deftly engages with multifaceted notions of female identity, earning her recognition as a contemporary artist who, much like Cindy Sherman, skillfully navigates diverse narratives and perspectives.Often triggered by something she has read, Luxton’s work delves into a variety of histories. Most of her projects start with an extensive research period where she looks for literary, artistic, botanical, animalistic and musical references, as well as exploring colour, texture, and objects. Using her own human features — eyes, nose, lips and hands — as a base for her compositions, she constructs otherworldly narratives, populated by butterflies, flowers and clouds. Inspired by Italian and Northern Renaissance portraits, all the components of her images play with classical symbolism. A way to interpret her portraits is through her carefully crafted titles and accompanying poems, such as Unravel, 2023.
Luxton performs detailed narratives for the camera. Her images first exist as a sculpted set, where the model, herself, shape-shifts through cosmetics, props and light. And all ornamentations complement each other. An immersive quality, or element, is achieved thanks to post-production digital technology, leaving the viewer wondering if they are looking at a painting or photography. Luxton states that she “creates canvases thanks to photography”. More recently, as a way
back to gallery