Getting Lost in the Magical Dreamscapes of Laura Hendricks
Getting Lost in the Magical Dreamscapes of Laura Hendricks
Photographer Laura Hendricks Takes Us on a Voyage Through Her Dreamy Landscapes
Photographer:
Laura Hendricks
Words:
Caroline Meeusen
Utah-based artist Laura Hendricks is a true photographic magician, creating surreal photo collages that take you down dreamy panoramas. She combines different landscapes to form one image, creating a collage rooted in realism, yet delicately mixed with surrealist elements. Mountains drenched in soft pastel colors make beautiful scenes that enthrall you. Laura takes us through these dreamy worlds and shows us how magical nature can be.
VISUAL PLEASURE Magazine: Am I right that Hav House is the name of your studio? Where does the name come from?
Laura Hendricks: Hav House is technically the name of mine and my husband’s shared business. He’s an artist as well, so since we both make money in the same way, by making and selling art, it was easier to have one company between the two of us. The name comes from the fact that I love art in house interiors. To hav(e) house, is to hav(e) art. It’s also a play on my husband’s name: Havoc.
What did you study? How did you become a photographer?
I got an associate degree in general education before going to cosmetology school. I saved up money from a salon job to buy a camera and started taking photos of everything. Over time, I gravitated toward shooting landscapes almost exclusively and was most inspired by that subject.
What’s your biggest dream as an artist?
I’d love to conceptualize and execute a solo show in one of the galleries I admire in New York City.
What would you say is the main objective in your works?
To help people realize how magical and healing nature is.
I can’t seem to escape the mountains (national parks) in your work. They always return. Why is that, do you have a special connection with them?
I do! I left my orthodox religion several years ago. To clear my mind and get some exercise, I started hiking by myself several times a week. To be in the mountains healed me! Nature taught me how tiny I was, and it made the world bigger. My religion had taught that almost everything I did, said, wore, consumed, etc., mattered for good or bad. Nature had a way of putting things back into perspective for me.
Your work looks surreal but also real at the same time. How do you achieve this?
My work is “based on a true story.” All the elements separately are real, but because I’m able to rearrange how the photos interact with each other by playing with composition and color combinations, the work ends up having a surreal feeling to it.
I love the soft, mostly pastel colors you use in your images. Is this a deliberate choice or are you just drawn to them?
Both! I am drawn to them, so I deliberately choose them. I’m a desert girl to my core. Desert mountains, colors, textures, skies, etc., make me feel most at home. I associate pastel colors in nature with the desert.
Can you tell me a bit more about your working method, what programs you use for example?
I make both handmade and digitally-done collages. My handmade collages are done by printing out the photos I want to use and good old-fashioned cutting and pasting. I have always used a website called PicMonkey to create my digitally-done collages–I only started using Photoshop in the last couple months! That blows most fellow photographers’ mind, but I just used what I knew and what was easy to me.
What is the most amazing and exciting thing you got to do in this job?
Every day I feel amazed and excited that I get to make art for my job! Exploring landscapes, photographing them, and creating based off my images is continually stimulating. I love the work, and that feels extraordinary to me!
