Nature photographer Kurt Lolo of Lolo Pics has created a very effective series this last week around the idea of reflection, to which I dedicated two articles, " The Broken Mirror ", and " Merlin's Eye ", and this article is on the continuation of this beautiful series of photos. Reflection is an idea that is as seductive as it is intellectual. The idea of seeing the world from an alternative perspective is a powerful one. The art of the period of the Golden Age of the Renaissance has beautiful examples of paintings that give tribute to the enchanting idea of reflection. The photo of Kurt Lolo to which the artist gave the title " Under the Dome " astonished me with its perfection. It shows the reflection of the photographer in a drop of water. The reflection is precious in the details of the blue sky and its white clouds, of the photographer at the edge of the water, taking the photo, of the green colours of the trees and the grasses at the edge of that water, all in minuscule and perfect reflection of the water drop that opens itself up wide like the eye of the sky itself. This itself is already a technical tour de force, but what is really interesting is that this photo is the twin of a painting by Golden Age Renaissance artist, Pieter Claesz ( 1597 - 1660 ), born in Antwerpen and deceased in Haarlem in the Netherlands. It is striking, this artistic correlation between the photo of Kurt Lolo and the painting of Pieter Claesz of 1625, " Vanitas with violin and glass bowl ", that also shows the diminutive reflection of the artist in a clear sphere, that makes the reflection seem the perspective from an all seeing eye.
The Renaissance was known for the richness of the colours of its paintings, of colours where the play of light and shadow were central to the composition, a trademark that was to be made famous by the great Italian master Leonardo da Vinci. The paintings of Pieter Claesz have this magnificent quality of richness in colours and the painting of 1625, with the reflection of the painter is a beautiful example of this. Kurt Lolo's photograph shows an impressive artistic intuition with this creation that was made under the auspices of master painter Pieter Claesz. His mesmerizing photo shows a perspective with echos of the Renaissance and its Golden Age, that the photographer, who possesses an exuberant and open creative spirit, was able to create with an elegant passion. This being said, this photo also shows the signature of the photographer, this trait that Kurt Lolo has like no other visual artist to give intimacy to a dramatic moment, like the reflection in a water drop. This photo is quite intriguing. It is not about a visual sensation making us think that it is the artist who is about to fall into the reflection of the water, with the reflection of the artist safe and sound at the edge of the water, so hypnotizing. It is this sensation that we will find ourselves at the bottom of the water, with the dome of the sky very high above us. It is a fantastic optical illusion. It is a photograph that is a dazzling harmony of Renaissance influences and modern techniques, and that makes this photo of Kurt Lolo unique. I envision a great conversation between Pieter Claesz and Kurt Lolo, in which the two artists would agree that great art stands the test of time, like the painting of Pieter Claesz proves, and which the photo of Kurt Lolo surely will prove.
Trudi Ralston
The research on the artist Pieter Claesz and the paintings of the Golden Age of the Renaissance, courtesy of Wikipedia.
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