MANMADE / NO HUMAN

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"MANMADE / NO HUMAN"

Jan Stel [1970, Purmerend, the Netherlands] is a self-taught Fine Art Photographer and Photoshop artist. Always a creative person, Jan was a pioneering artist in his youth, spraying graffiti murals in the suburbs of Amsterdam and, at to home, painting detailed drawings and realistic illustrations. A gift of analogue photo gear from his father prompted his interest in photography, and inspired him to develop his own creative style. Jan Stel’s photography is made in pure natural light; no flashlights or studio lamps are used. This authentic process of working takes time, sensitivity and the right timing for action.

Jan explains his photographic style in this way: “The human eye is far more sensitive than a camera lens and picks up minor as well as major differences in a scene. Because the photo camera is limited in its ability, I capture the image in multiple exposures. The scene my eye has seen and that which the camera is unable to pick up is what fascinate me. I want to reassert this sensitivity. I do this by brushing the photographed brackets into a sort of light painting, similar to what the dark room masters and painters of old used to do”.