Merve Born in Istanbul, Turkey and graduated from Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University as an ceramic artist in 2010. She is a ceramics jewellery artist but is most popularly known for her series “natural act” which is a group of collages based on the questions of the relation between nature and the humanity. The main feature of this series is the unexpected use of selective colouring of black and white vintage photographs and new coloured photographs which creates a parallel meaning to the original storyline of the photograph. She spends a lot of time looking for  the perfect vintage photo to manipulate, when she finds one she instantly starts thinking of how it could be manipulated in her head.

 

Technical: This image is made up from two photographs, one of a cliff edge with rough water at the bottom stretching out to sea. the second photo is of the edge of an old building. Both of the images were taken using natural lighting which was probably not with direct sun light due to the lack of harsh shadows. both of the photographs have a large depth of field because they are both landscapes. we know they were both taken with a fast shutter speed due to how sharp the images are, the waves would also be blurred if it was a longer shutter speed.

Visual:  The main image of the building is in black and white and has a high contrast, the sky in the background is white washed which helps the texture of the building stand out. There is no other distraction in the background which helps the building stand out and take more of our focus. The photo of the sea has been edited with a filter which gives it a blue tint and enhances the shadows giving the image more texture. The image of the sea has been cut out and placed perfectly over the edge of the building to look as if the picture is on the wall in real life. the photo has also been taken from a low angle making us feel we are looking up at the wall. although we know that the image has been manipulated it creates a sense of fantasy by combining two polar opposites.

Conceptual: this image is made out of two completely separate photography, the black and white image is one the artist found and did not take herself. Like the rest of her work she combines old photos with knew ones, this old photo acts like a canvas for the new image. The coloured photo represents nature and contrasts with the urban black and white image to show a visual representation of how diverse landscapes and out surroundings can look.