Image of the Week: Paul DeCelle

Moment in Blue by Paul DeCelle

Ultra Fractal is certainly versatile but too often images produced with it quickly lose their freshness to my eyes. The reason is found in its composing process in which striking new formulas are shared and then widely stepped on by the throngs of UF users. Once these variations-on-a-theme floodgates open, what was initially novel quickly can become drowned in a backwash of mass replication. This rapid, consumptive cycle is probably why I can usually tell immediately when an image was made using Ultra Fractal. It is also why I have reservations about the Mississippi School of Anti-Fractal Art™ teaching classes in the use of UF. Sign up today and soon you'll be speed cloning the styles of others in no time!!!

So it's always a surprise and a delight to see an artist use UF in a completely unexpected way. I'm not surprised, though, that the latest revelation comes from Paul DeCelle. He has long been on a quest to find new ways to coax fine art out of UF. His current knock-offs of abstract art pieces are the most exciting UF work I've seen since Jock Cooper rooted around in Bryce to create the stunning works found in his Mechanical Gallery.

Today's image of the week is what DeCelle calls a "UF rendition" of a painting by constructivist artist Lars-Gunnar Nordström. You can compare DeCelle's rendering to Nordström's original here. DeCelle has a number of these abstract renditions displayed in his Renderosity gallery, including other works by Nordström. As they say in ad agencies, DeCelle's re-creations certainly "break through the clutter" of the deluge of the usual UF and Apo fare. DeCelle is to be commended for taking risks and for revealing the wonders of a kind of digital cubism. He could have been content to reap oohs and aahs for burnished metal spirals he can probably crank out in his sleep. Instead, he has successfully opened up fractal art to a new way of seeing.

To their credit, the Fractalbookers at Renderosity understand DeCelle is on to something good. Unfortunately, they also have a serious case of artistic poison ivy and are itching to pry open DeCelle's secrets to keep fractal assembly lines well oiled. And, with a sigh, I suppose the spirit of open source sharing will triumph in the end. Soon, the enigma of DeCelle's process will be revealed for dissection on the UF List. Then, once the tweaking feeding frenzy begins, how long will it be before fractal renditions of poker playing dogs and Elvis on black velvet begin to re-clutter the galleries of art communities and smother what was once vibrant?

I remember what an aesthetic kick it was when I first saw UF work done using BringItIn. But, within a week, my eyes were stabbed when they were subjected to my first spiral-made-with-kittens. After that, every BringItIn-enhanced image just made me want to gack up a hairball.

So, readers, enjoy drinking cream before it turns sour. Here's hoping that DeCelle continues to share his ground-breaking work but keeps his mysterious secrets secret -- at least until I can stock up on a few cases of Maalox.

Tags: fractal, fractals, fractal art, art reviews, art criticism, paul decelle, lars-gunnar nordström, ultra fractal, bringitin, hairball gacking, orbit trap