Brief Statement

Simon Schofield. UK based artist, academic and coder. Generative landscapes and textures. No AI; just hard work, love and probability. All the images here are created using a unique form of digital photo-montage developed by the artist. Each image is composed from many thousands of smaller images, guided by the artist and specialist software.

Prints

The pieces are mainly intended as prints on to paper. The sizes are mentioned at the bottom of each image. The edition runs are usually 10 + 2 Artist’s Proofs. They are printed using archival inks on to 315 gsm soft matte fine art paper and are available framed or unframed. For availability and indicative prices please visit Tag Fine Arts or email Simon (simon.schofield1@icloud.com) for a chat.

Artists Bio and Creative Process

Schofield’s images present us with mesmerising expanses of texture brought together using a unique set of photographic, drawing, and technological processes, often requiring the creation of bespoke software.  In these images, many hundreds of samples are made from nature, then carefully re-configured to create the final image, which may, in its final form, contain tens of thousands of montaged elements.

The intention is to create textural expanses possessing the same qualities of complexity, vitality and surprise as seen in true nature, but also contain the battle for artistic control and expression. This balance between the independent unpredictability of the media and the artist’s desire for expression forms an important dynamic within this work. Each piece goes through a long cycle of modification and adjustment until this struggle comes to rest. Even though the computer does a lot of work in terms of adding detail, the undertaking is still one of diligent artistic authorship. It is time-consuming, with many attempts and modifications before the final image is realised. The process has nothing to do with generative AI.

Simon has exhibited his images internationally and is shown by the London based gallery Tag Fine Arts and has a track record of innovation within the digital arts; he produced award winning software for architects while at University of Cambridge Department of Architecture , has won a BAFTA for a music game he produced with Neville Brody and multimedia collective AudioROM. He was a Lecturer in the Electronic Arts department of the Slade School of Fine Art, UCL, between 1997-2001 and worked helping on several of Tim Head’s digital artworks. In 2005 he was awarded a NESTA Fellowship to focus on developing systems for automated compositing which formed the basis for all his subsequent artworks. Early systems where built with the help of Paul Harter.

He is currently a Lecturer in the Department of Computer Science at Nottingham Trent University.