Feature Artist 2011

Ben Lovell

Ben Lovell has created a series of what are alien images for someone from Tasmania, helping us all to appreciate our place in the world. He has captured the intensity of a busy American city in a beautiful way, showing appreciation for the architecture and man-made structures, yet proving to himself there is no place like home.

18 year old Ben was born in Burnie and spent his early years here before moving with his Mum to Hobart for most of his schooling life. He returned to Burnie in 2009 and completed year 11 and 12 at Hellyer College.

2011 is a gap year for Ben to figure out what direction he will go in and how he will leave his mark on the world. He has taken this opportunity with his time to further experiment with his art. Although still quite hesitant in what direction he is heading, the plan is to begin a Bachelor of Computing in Launceston next year.

Ben received a video camera as a gift at the age of eight. He filmed everything and enjoyed using effects on the work he had filmed. When he enrolled in a photography class at College, his Mum purchased a digital camera for his birthday. These two gifts have lead to Ben being asked to be the Burnie Shines feature artist for 2011.

Ben’s talent has been harvested during his time at College where he was recognised for various Merit Awards and was awarded the Examiners’ Choice Award in the 2010 ArtRage competition.

The photographs featured as part of Burnie Shines were captured on a recent family holiday to America. Ben has a great eye for an image and the dense American cityscapes were irresistible to him because they were so vastly different to his Tasmanian experience. Once home, he treated the images to intensify the colours and density of the city scapes creating even more contrast to his home environment. Many of Ben’s photographs are also accompanied by film footage or small animations that add another dimension to the work.