Chicago-based artist Stephen Eichhorn creates work that is both bold and visually striking due to its rich us of colour and endlessly elaborate clusters of collage. He beautifully combines the intricate details of collaged plant life with the minimal, simplistic design found in his compositions. Playing with elements of design, his compositions often shift the point of focus in the space, creating a remarkable sense of balance. In his Stacked Minerals series, the collage is not in the middle of the frame, but instead off centre. Other works of his use various shapes to shift the balance of the piece.

One of the unique aspects of Eichhorn’s collages is the inclusion of shadows in his Stacked Minerals series. These complex forms of crystal and cacti do not exist in real life, as they are created from cut photographs. However, these structures cast a shadow in his work, creating depth as if they were sculptures. Eichhorn’s other collages, such as Cluster Fade, construct flattened compositions of plant life against gradients of warm colours. Experimenting with the usual format of a 2-dimensional work of art, the artist overlaps and intersects photography, shape and form until the layers of his work are seamlessly fused together.

Make sure to check out Eichhorn’s recent photo book titled Cats and Plants, which features equally impressive collages of plant-infused cats, with a bit of humour.