The artwork of Marten Elder exudes intense, bold colours that seem to have been created through the use of physical alteration or digital manipulation. Many of his pieces even appear to be hyper-realistic paintings due to their unnatural colour palettes and surreal qualities. However, his compositions, often un-manipulated, are shot with a camera using digital technology that picks up colours that cannot be seen with the human eye. They are part of a spectrum in which we cannot see normally, but become incredibly vivid in Elder’s photographs. This technique takes simple subjects that may seem mundane at first, like the shadows cast from a plant leaf, and turn them into intersecting planes of brilliant colour and hazy, abnormal auras that disrupt their once natural environment.

These uncanny magentas and turquoises breathe new life into scenes of cactus, clouds, and sidewalks. The psychedelic hues that engulf the subjects in his Elder’s photographs dreamily capture the intensity and vibrancy that embodies the atmosphere of Los Angeles, where the artist is currently based. Elder has shown his work all over the U.S. in places like NYC, Miami, L.A. and Vancouver.