“Diversity of the cultural ecology is a desirable state of affairs, especially in opposition to the accelerating trend toward the uniform digitalization of all sensory experience, wherein an electronic ‘reader’ stands between experience and observation, and all manifestation is encoded identically”
- Koren, Leonard. Wabi-Sabi for Artists, Designers, Poets and Philosophy. 1994.
In the 21st Century digital technologies have given us an unprecedented level of control in so many of the creative arenas – photography, film, music to name just a few. This enormous level of control eliminates the mistakes but it is often these mistakes, which allow the magical to happen within a work. These mistakes allow us to let in the accidental, the uncontrollable and the unknown into an otherwise highly controlled environment. It is very hard to consciously let go of the level of control we have become accustomed to in the digital age of image production and post-production.
Inspired by the singular fashion direction of Grace Cobb, Tozer chose the halftone technique to align the images with the specific era and feeling that the fashion references. The exaggeration of the dot size draws attention to the physicality of the medium rather than disguising it’s intrinsic makeup and ensures the message of the story is delivered clearly and confidently with no excuse.
Screen-printing allowed Tozer to relinquish control of the minutiae of density and to some extent composition at the final point of production. It opened a door to the analogue world and welcomed back in an element of the accidental, the uncontrollable and the unknown.
HALF•TONE is a celebration of the analogue, the handmade and the authentic.
HALF•TONE
Photography: Jez Tozer
Screen printing: Jez Tozer & Cassandra Yap
Curation: Ryan Lanji
Music: Jeffrey Hinton
Drinks: Meantime Brewery & Jamesons
Special Thanks: Grace Cobb & Wonderland Magazine, Rik Patel, Bridget & Rasa.