Dean West’s complex and multilevel works have already won love of numerous prestigious competitions juries and millions of photography lovers all around the world. And now it’s time to capture the imagination of residents and guests of St. Petersburg. The exhibition will include several series, such as Church, In Pieces, Fabricate, Olympia and various advertising projects.

The artist is not interested in being referred to as a photographer as such, but rather someone who uses the medium to explore his own, constructed realities. With this distinction, West feels that people can move past the medium's association of journalistic representation, and interpret the works as the artist’s vision alone.

I believe the art of photography really is about its definition — painting with light. I use photography as a medium to produce my ideas  – says the photographer.

At the beginning of his career, Dean West was inspired by the works of such famous photographers as Erwin Olaf, Philip-Lorca di Corcia and Jeff Wall. Another significant influence on his original style was mythology.

I looked at mythology for a little while as a way of producing photographs. The narratives within mythology really allowed for any possibilities so this provided a great foundation for me as I learnt the craft of constructing images — explains Dean. I then shifted towards questioning the process of image creation itself, looking further into how a photograph is constructed while drawing attention to the digital movement. These days, my inspiration comes from my surrounding environment.

The process of creating a single work can take up to a year or more. According to the artist, he lets his ideas germinate for approximately 6-12 months. During this time he reads books, takes notes, watches films, goes to gallery openings — pretty much anything relatable to the idea he will explore before producing a project.

The artist usually begins with an inspiration or a basic, nebulous concept and then fine-tunes it throughout the creative process. He works with professional illustrators to help him sketch out concepts and define the original vision before commissioning the team to do the production. This could involve set building, prop making, styling etc., all depending on the complexity of the idea. All the pieces then come together for the actual shoot phase before going into the post production.

Utilizing the power of aesthetic force, the works displayed draw upon Hollywood’s stylized aesthetic to captivate an audience’s attention.

Starting from 17 February you will have the chance to experience the dream world of Dean West’s photography! The author will come to St. Petersburg to build up the exhibition and to open his first show in St. Petersburg.