Robert Sturman's gift is to see things differently from the
beginning of the process, and his images come alive as free-form visual
poetry. Both representational and mysterious, the artist's multi-media
pieces reflect the alchemy of his signature blend of painting and
photography. They possess a graceful dreamlike quality, yet are
seriously in the moment with an intense rush of color and light.

In finding his own artistic signature, Sturman refined an
improvisational, labor-intensive process that synthesizes both his
photographic and painterly expertise. Each of his pieces begins with an
original image created with an instant camera, instant photographic
film, and meticulously considered lighting. As soon as the image comes
out of the camera, Sturman warms it up to keep the chemical emulsions
fluid—depending on his locale when shooting, source heat might be the
sun in the tropics, or the warmth of his winter coat in cooler climes.

On site wherever he is in the world, Sturman then immediately carves
into the still wet and supple surface of the photo with a variety of
handmade tools until he feels the image has been manipulated and
transformed to its ultimate potential. The piece is later enlarged
using an optimally high-resolution scanner, and a process through which
none of the original light radiance or color luminosity is lost.
Because Sturman chooses his subject matter in advance with its inherent
color values in mind, his palette is extraordinary. Coupled with the
impressionistic "brushstrokes" of Sturman's hand implements, the result
is as pure a fusion of painting and photography as exists anywhere.

Laos - 2004