In the series Unexpected Geology, American photographer Ellen Jantzen investigates how the environment influences someone's psyche. She is intrigued by the shapes and beauty of mountains, but she is also fascinated by rocks. Jantzen combines mountains and rocks digitally in magical images in which the unreal scale looks surreal.

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Ellen Jantzen lived for twenty years in Los Angeles, California. Because of the tall buildings of the city, the mountains were difficult to see. "I was 30 years old when I saw a mountain for the first time. I became intrigued by the mountains." After moving from Los Angeles, Jantzen became fascinated with nature and rock formations in New Mexico. She started with her photo series Unexpected Geology, an investigation of proportions and scales of landscapes, rock formations, and mountains. As a viewer of her work, you do not know whether you see a real mountain or a stone from her garden. By her visual art, she gets a grip on her new environment. “I love the mountains and have always been interested in geology, rock formations, and volcanoes. With Unexpected Geology, I'm experimenting with the ratio and proportions of stones. There are many rocks around our house in Santa Fe. I observe stones that are similar to large mountains, but having tiny proportions. I wondered how you could picture a close-up of a rock, and more importantly, how you can manipulate an image of a small rock into the context of a mountain, as a formation in a landscape. I've researched the contrast between big and small proportions.”

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New environment

The starting point of the photo series Unexpected Geology originated from her personal life. Jantzen had noticed the impact of her moving from Los Angeles to Midwestern America. She was looking for a way to get used to her hometown of Santa Fe. “My parents grew older, so my husband Michael Jantzen and I decided to move ten years ago to their neighbourhood. They had an area of five hectares, where I spent a lot of time photographing their estate. I became intrigued by the environment and noticed, for example, a significant difference between the seasons. After the loss of my parents, my husband and I decided to stay in the area. We get used a lot to the area and moved to Santa Fe in New Mexico. There I enjoyed the endless views of mountains.”

As an artist, she recognizes how you become personally attuned to the environment where you are and how your mind is influenced by it. There are various aspects to Ellen Jantzen’s work. Her art is a mix of emotional reflection and creativity. “People react very strongly to their environment, but an emotional approach to the environment is not always easy to describe in words. In a city, you feel different than when you are in the countryside, especially when you have moved to another state. You have brought your familiar items such as your interior or computer, but you are completely in a new environment than before. That has an impact on your brain. Everything is new, that makes you more aware of your environment."

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 In a city, you feel different than when you are in the countryside.

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Photo Collage

For Unexpected Geology, Ellen photographed different locations at different moments. Each artwork consists of multiple images. "While I am photographing, my improvising grows into a concept. When my ideas melt together, I find a direction for my photo series. Starting from my concept, I go outdoors and take my photographs. First, I search for a landscape and a mountain formation that inspires me. At the moment, the sky is sometimes not interesting enough in the picture. I replace the sky with another one with interesting clouds. Later I add a photo of the stone. I don't manipulate the explicit image too much, but it's more of a collage effect. Of course, I have manipulated the sizes of the rocks and mountains with Photoshop, but you hardly see any form of manipulation."

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Mini Stories

Ellen Jantzen sees her work as visual mini-stories to which the viewer can add his own story. “For me, the artwork is finished when the imagination of the viewer gets triggered. I always want to surprise the viewer with something they have not seen before. At the same time, I want to touch the viewer emotionally with beauty. It has been said that beauty in a work of art is not intellectual enough and that art cannot be aesthetic. But I believe that art can be beautiful and intellectual at the same time. People always respond positively to beautiful colors and shapes.”

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Ellen Jantzen was born and raised in St. Louis Missouri. Her early college years were spent obtaining a degree in graphic arts and later emphasizing fine art. Jantzen spent two years at FIDM (The Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising) in downtown Los Angeles, where she obtained her advanced degree in 1992. After a few years of working in the industry, including several years at Mattel Toy Company as a senior project designer, she became disillusioned with the corporate world and longed for a more creative outlet. Having been trained in computer design while at Mattel, Jantzen continued her education on her own, using mostly Photoshop software.

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‍www.ellenjantzen.com

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