Past Meets Present in this Photoshop Fantasy
Equal parts quirky, cool, and beautiful (with just a dash of haunting), these images from Australian photographer and artist Jane Long give you a whimsical window into the past.
The original pictures were captured by Romanian photographer Costică Acsinte, who is the name sake for the series, “Dancing with Costică.” Taken over 50 years ago, these photos are already a gorgeous compilation of portraits, but in the hands of a gifted artist they become infused with a new dimension of story and life.
Jane Long used Photoshop to digitally add in the new features and colors. Her unique interpretations of the given photographs end up looking like something you could find on the set of a Tim Burton film (Big Fish, much?).
The artist had this to say about what drew her to the photographs and inspired her own project:
“I think one of the things that appeals to me about Costică Acsinte’s images is how in some ways the subject’s lives are very different to ours but in other ways we are all still the same. We still have photos taken with our loved ones even if our lifestyles are very different. Also there is a consistency to the archive that is quite unusual as most of the images are taken in the same studio, and obviously by the same photographer.”
As for how she would decide what to do with the photographs, Long would either be inspired by something in the original image that “sparks an idea” or have an existing concept in mind which she would then develop. “Usually I’m looking for a way to make the subject interact with the environment - but in a way that is somewhat unexpected!”
You can purchase prints of the photographs from her website.
Check out more of Jane Long’s work on her Facebook page. To view the original photographs and read more background information visit the Costică Ascinte Archive website.
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