REAL / UNREAL, Botanical Studies
RAEL / UNREAL
Botanical Studies by John Bonath
Look closely.
Which flowers are real and which ones are fake? Are you sure? Look again.
Often considered a faithful documentation of the natural world, photography has histori-
cally enabled artists to record reality. Despite this narrowly defined function, artists have
consistently pushed the limits of the technology’s capabilities. Photographers controlled
the film’s exposure, manipulated the lighting or created fictional scenes in front of the
camera-all with an eye to altering reality.
Recent developments in digital photography have greatly expanded the ways that art-
ists can influence their images. The possibilities are bound only by imagination and John
Bonath has a tremendous imagination. He purposefully challenges our conceptions of
truth and fiction. The series Real/UnReal: Botanical Studies focuses on specimens that
have interesting colors, shapes and textures. As often as he finds subjects during walks
along a river, Bonath also finds subjects while shopping at convenience stores. His
sources are often unexpected.
The artist has noted, “Although my work is surreal in nature, it is more correctly placed
in the movement of Magic Realism, which is less coincidental and not a fantasy set in
the unreal. In a fusion between physical and psychological states, mundane elements
are endowed with deeper meaning while staying grounded in physical reality. My style
relies on the psychological assumptions that are the inherent nature of photography-the
assumption that photographic reality is a representation depicting what was in front of the
camera and therefore true in some way.”
Ultimately none of the flowers in the exhibition are real. They are all creative inventions.
Please enjoy John Bonath’s view of reality. He encourages you to touch the photos.
by Kim Manajek, Denver Botanic Gardens
Real / Unreal Statement by Kim Manajek (download Pdf)
Audio Radio Interview, KUVO Denver, CO: Rodney Frank and John Bonath 9.12.2008, 10 min
Real / Unreal Westword (download Pdf)
Botanical Gardens, Denver CO | Installation Views
Republic Plaza, Denver CO | Installation Views
Artist at Work
Lincoln Center Galleries, Fort Collins CO | Installation Views
