Filip Dujardin photographs buildings that are post modern and mundane. They are nondescript and unassuming. He has a way of spicing things up, though. With the help of Photoshop, Dujardin uses these photos and remixes them into structures we’ve never seen before and could never exist in our world. His series of images, titled Fictions, is just that, but done so seamlessly and with such mastery that we might think they are real.
Dujardin’s work contains some spectacular things. Buildings are labyrinths and Escher-eque in their construction. You could travel the same path over and over again, but never get anywhere. Oh well, who cares? You probably can’t even get inside. They don’t have entrances; they are simply a mass of siding and concrete.
Dujardin’s architecture is a mass of things that we love looking at buildings. Surface decoration is more important than structural integrity. Take, for instance, the windows. In multiple photographs, he’s adorned building with all different factory-style windows.The varying color and size is a design decision, and he places them in clusters. Likewise, he uses the repeating of balconies, ducts, and vents to create patterns. Metal siding is collaged based on color combination than anything having to do with an actual building.
We can try to apply logic to Dujardin’s structures. We’re probably familiar with these types of buildings, and expect them to look a certain way. But, with Dujardin’s doctored photographs, we cannot. Instead, we can admire them for the fantasy that they are.
After gazing at Dujardin’s work for awhile, it occurs to that this series was probably a lot of fun to create. It’s the digital equivalent of playing with Legos. There are a lot of pieces, and with the help of Photoshop you can cut them up, flip them, and arrange them however you wish.
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