Create! Magazine is thrilled to announce the release of a new book by the immensely talented visual artist Brooke DiDonato. Born in Ohio and currently based in Austin, Texas, DiDonato has gained international recognition for her surreal photography that distorts everyday life through mesmerizing visual anomalies. Her latest book, "Take a Picture, It Will Last Longer," is the most extensive collection of her work to date, showcasing both her iconic series and new works published for the first time.
DiDonato’s photography proposes scenes where the boundaries of reality blur, inviting viewers to step into extreme landscapes and domestic spaces that echo the subconscious mind. Her bizarre yet intriguing scenarios compel us to question the nature of our reality. From a pair of legs caught in the act of intrusion or escape hanging from a window to pastel suburban houses where flowers bloom from armchairs and toilet bowls, each image is a testament to her ability to transform the mundane into the extraordinary.
The book includes DiDonato’s renowned body of work, "A House is Not a Home," and introduces new pieces that continue to challenge and fascinate. The collection is enriched by a short introduction from writer Eleanor Sutherland, who provides an insightful overview of DiDonato’s practice. Adding a personal touch, an intimate conversation between Emmy award-winning filmmaker and writer Eve Van Dyke and Brooke’s father, Bob DiDonato, offers a unique glimpse into the artist’s evolution.
DiDonato’s photographs are as poignant as they are playful. Titles like "Growing Upward Has Its Downside," "What to Expect When You’re Expecting Nothing," and "Went to Therapy but I’m Still in My Patterns" reflect contemporary anxieties and universal themes of love and loss. Each image evokes feelings of nostalgia and disorientation, teetering between the familiar and the fantastical. Inspired by the family homes of her Ohio upbringing, her compositions challenge conventional notions of how space can be occupied. Torsos, legs, and arms contort into uncanny arrangements across sofas and ascend into attics, transforming ordinary surroundings into sites of unexpected psychological encounters.
In "Take a Picture, It Will Last Longer," DiDonato invites us to linger in her beguiling world, daring us to look a little longer. Her work transcends the confines of traditional photography, creating a universe that is slightly off-kilter. Bodies intertwine, trees bend backwards, and iron fences become malleable. Each shot twists the meanings of familiar objects, unhinging the laws of physics and inviting viewers to see the world through DiDonato’s surreal lens.
As Eleanor Sutherland of Aesthetica Magazine aptly notes, DiDonato’s work teeters between the familiar and the fantastical, offering a one-of-a-kind photographic experience. "Take a Picture, It Will Last Longer" is a curated collection that beckons us to explore the surreal, compelling us to question our perceptions and embrace the extraordinary.
To support this project and reserve a book please visit: https://vol.co/collections/brooke-didonato
