Stolen Art

This collection is of photos that is made to look like paintings.
I’m not a painter (Wouldn’t it be nice if you woke up one day and you could suddenly paint?) …
Beyond that, I’m fascinated over things that are created by chance, or by an unplanned chain of events that result in an “artwork” without an artist making it with any intention. It just happens.
Sometimes it’s simply the force of nature, sometimes it’s a combined force of unintentional painting.

Below is the story behind the collection.
It has evolved in several stages and I’ll try to illustrate it with some pictures.
If you are in a hurry to see the result, please check out the book or the prints pages.

So what do I mean by Stolen Art?
One of the first photos I defined as Stolen Art was when I visited my wife’s studio.
She’s a painter and when she paints she clean her brushes with a piece of fabric.
She was about to throw away the fabric she was using when I said: Wait a minute! Let me take a picture of it before you throw it away.
I thought the marks that were left of brushes she cleaned looked like doves flying in the air.
I felt like I found a treasure.
The bin was full of art. I only need to “steal” it with my camera.

Soon I found many sources of Stolen Art. Rusty doors, service boxes, fallen tiles, stains on the floor.
I found out that by isolating parts of surfaces, making the contrast or color balance harder, turning things upside down etc. was a way to discover interesting art in mundane things. It is everywhere. You just need to look for it!

  • Birds

In 2017 I published a book with the title “Stolen Art” and created an exhibition that was presented in several galleries.

Many of the photos (but not all) can be found on Instagram with the hashtag #stolenart.
It’s possible to order prints up to 70×100 cm (without a frame). Larger prints and framed pictured can be discussed …
Please contact us by mail – animation@zigzag.se

© All photos are copyrighted by Uzi Geffenblad