Philippe+Ramette









** Phillippe Ramette **



 * The French artist Philippe Ramette believes nothing should ever be faked. His improbable, gravity-defying poses might look like classic Photoshop, until you notice they are peppered with little incongruities. "You see a tension in my hands, my red face is far from serene as the blood rushes to it, my suit is ruffled." **

====** A sculptor, Ramette rose to fame in the 90s as part of the French contemporary art scene, creating strange wooden and metal instruments and objects. Photography was the logical next step, and through it he has created an odd, neo-romantic universe, using a carefully planned, rational approach to create totally irrational situations. In France, his bizarre images have been compared to the work of Buster Keaton and the world of silent cinema. For him, they are a statement about gravity, weightlessness and man's relationship to the landscape **====

====** Just looking at these optical illusions by conceptual artist Philippe Ramette might give you a bit of vertigo. Without the use of Photoshop or any other image manipulation, Ramette seems to shift the perspective of the earth, turning it sideways or upside down. In his photos, Ramette dangles from cliffs, walks up stone walls and stands on balconies that jut out, improbably, from the surface of the sea. **** Of course, it’s more fun to simply enjoy the images and not worry about how they were created, marveling instead at the way they shift us off balance, looking at the world in a new way. **====