Bark River PhotographyHartland, Wi
John Prusak is no stranger to the DEVIATE stage. We’re welcoming him back for the third time and can’t wait to see his new portfolio of incredible photographs. John’s been snapping photos for years, starting out in fashion and catalog photography. While he loves taking pictures, his true passion lies in capturing dark and mysterious photos and capturing subjects in unlikely environments- offering a more thought provoking and intriguing experience for the onlooker. Third times the charm for John and he can’t wait to show off his new work, taken from a recent trip to Portugal.
Tell us about you.
I am a passionate art photographer. My day job was in fashion photography and catalogs, but my personal passions are a bit darker. That is what I bring to Deviate. My work can be dark or sensual; or more likely both. I meld beautiful figures with unlikely environments and themes to create edgy, thought provoking and artistic pieces. A portion of my art may be considered provocative. New for 2024 show, I traveled to Portugal to photograph the "Bone Chapels" to bring new and dark art to be debuted at Deviate.
What inspires your art?
Anywhere and anything can inspire a concept or theme that I pursue. I challenge myself to push boundaries by focusing on abstract concepts or themes and try to have the art piece tell a story. I envision light, colors, and the human figure; integrating those in uncommon ways. I like to say that the result is an eclectic collection of distinctive and memorable art pieces. In 2023, many visitors to my booth at Deviate commented that they brought some friends to the show, as something in my art was memorable from 2022 and they wanted to share with friends (and now new Deviate attendees). New for 2024 will be a new feature: "Bones", that were photographed in Portugal at historic churches featuring walls and foundations built with actual human bones.
Knowing DEVIATE is an experiential, interactive art event, how do you envision participating and building your booth?
Deviate is a rare opportunity in the Midwest for people to interact with a mosaic of art not typically available in traditional galleries outside of NY or Europe. Many attendees liked to talk with me about how the art was created, and what was the concept behind what they were seeing. Last year I spent 90% of my time interacting with attendees, mostly on a "one on one" basis. They seemed to really enjoy the ability to fully interact with the artist and think and learn about a particular piece.
How did you find out about DEVIATE and why do you want to be involved?
I was fortunate to be an artist in 2022 and 2023.