Kate Ballis’ otherworldly infrared photographs of Palm Springs first caught our eye last autumn when we met the artist in the desert resort city, where she was working on the next instalment of her series Infra Realism. The Melbourne-based photographer has turned her lens on southern California for the past couple of years, conjuring phantasmagorical visions of modernist architecture, desert landscapes, swimming pools, and vintage cars.
Now, these bewitching images are having a homecoming of sorts, as Ballis makes her US debut with her first solo exhibition, ‘Hypercolour Fantasy: Infra Realism’, at Los Angeles gallery Garis & Hahn. Ballis credits Richard Mosse’s groundbreaking show at the 2013 Venice Biennale among her inspirations, but there’s no doubt she’s cast her own spell over infrared photography as her project has developed.
Installation view of ‘Hypercolour Fantasy: Infra Realism’ at Garis & Hahn, Los Angeles
Shot with a specially converted full-spectrum mirrorless Sony camera using various infrared filters, the artist reimagines iconic Palm Springs locations and mid-century houses – the Ace Hotel & Swim Club and Liberace’s former home included – as a dreamlike fantasy world. Succulents and palm trees are depicted in vibrant hues of blue, skies are a deep magenta, and swimming pools a ferocious blood-red.
Beyond Palm Springs, Infra Realism has taken Ballis to Arizona’s Sedona desert, Joshua Tree, and Los Angeles – the latter’s John Lautner-designed Sheats Goldstein Residence takes on a particularly ominous quality in infrared. Deserts, too, lend themselves well to the artist’s candy-coloured vision. ‘I was hesitant to take my infrared camera [to Sedona desert],’ explains Ballis. ‘For some reason I had imagined it to be an arid desert with no foliage, but was surprised to see it was a thriving valley full of twisted juniper trees, oaks and pines.’
Sheats Goldstein, 2017
Ballis has exhibited at Sydney’s Black Eye Gallery and at art fairs across Europe. The artist will release a book for her Infra Realism series with Australian publisher Manuscript in November. Watch this space.
Ascension, 2017
Gand Camp, 2017
California, 2017, by Kate Ballis
Ace, 2017
Birds, 2017
Sands, 2017
Liberace, 2017
INFORMATION
‘Hypercolour Fantasy: Infra Realism’ is on view until 20 October. For more information, visit the Garis & Hahn website and Kate Ballis’ website
ADDRESS
Garis & Hahn
1820 Industrial Street
Los Angeles CA 90021
-
Indian studio Compartment S4 celebrates architectural collaborationCompartment S4, the Indian architecture studio out of Ahmedabad and Mumbai, is true to its collective nature
-
A revamped Edinburgh apartment combines Californian-style modernism with modern craftArcher + Braun have transformed an apartment in a historic house with finely tuned contemporary additions and sympathetic attention to detail
-
Formafantasma’s biodiversity-boosting installation in a Perrier Jouët vineyard is cross-pollination at its bestFormafantasma and Perrier Jouët unveil the first project in their ‘Cohabitare’ initiative, ‘not only a work of art but also a contribution to the ecosystem’
-
Inside the distorted world of artist George RouyFrequently drawing comparisons with Francis Bacon, painter George Rouy is gaining peer points for his use of classic techniques to distort the human form
-
Sunshine noir is given an unsettling spin in new film ‘Skincare’; meet the directorBest known for music videos, director and writer of ‘Skincare’ Austin Peters on how he created the film’s bright, ominous world
-
The seven best Los Angeles museumsExplore LA's world-class museums, set within architectural masterpieces, lush gardens, and breathtaking viewpoints
-
Olafur Eliasson's new light sculptures illuminate Los AngelesOlafur Eliasson's new exhibition, 'Open,' at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, includes 11 new pieces
-
The lesser-known Los Angeles galleries contributing to a vibrant art sceneOutside of LACMA, MOCA and The Broad, these independent LA galleries are major players in the art world
-
Mona Kuhn’s love affair with Rudolph Schindler’s modernist LA home‘The Schindler House: A Love Affair’ features artist Mona Kuhn’s surreal-inspired silver prints evoking an impossible love
-
Crisis point: Josh Kline's world is wiped out by climate changeJosh Kline's dystopian show is currently on at MOCA in Los Angeles
-
‘Gas Tank City’, a new monograph by Andrew Holmes, is a photorealist eye on the American West‘Gas Tank City’ chronicles the artist’s journey across truck-stop America, creating meticulous drawings of fleeting moments
