Mark Weller

I use my camera like a painter uses a brush. It moves, lingers, explores, and dances with my subjects. While traditional photography generally captures three dimensions, my images explore the fourth dimension: time. The results are painterly like creations that evolve traditional photography beyond the customary landscape. All my images are of real places captured in time. I do long exposures to accentuate the effects of time. I also use a process called “Timestacking” whereby my images are transformed into an alternative way to view reality. There are a couple variations, but my images are usually multiple exposures – oftentimes up to 100 – that are then intermingled into a final frame. This allows my images to accentuate movement and results in bold colors and shapes. It bends traditional photography and uses new technologies to give my photographs a look suggesting post impressionism and abstraction. I don’t capture moments; I capture a series of moments to represent reality yet lead the viewer to a deeper sense of that which they gaze and experiences the familiar. How we see things fundamentally influences our perception of our surroundings, our attitudes, our understanding of who we are and how we fit into the cosmos.

My aesthetic is rooted in the likes of Wood, O’Keeffe, Cox and Benton. Each of these Midwest artists influence my interpretating of nature, the landscape, and shapes that convey mood.

Artist Biography

Mark Weller is a full-time artist based in Dane County. He was educated at UW-Milwaukee and upon graduation became a documentary filmmaker in Alaska. In 1980 he was hired by PBS Wisconsin as senior producer for news and public affairs, creating documentaries for statewide and national PBS viewers. In 1992 he joined a telecommunications firm to provide fiber optic-based networks to rural Wisconsin schools and libraries. He eventually rose to become President and CEO of the firm. In 2019 he retired from his corporate responsibilities to pursue timestacking photography. 2021 has been a banner year for Weller as his work has gained national attention from galleries from Manhattan to Palm Springs. So far this year, 6 art museums, 19 galleries and one magazine has showcased Weller’s work in Wisconsin, California, Minnesota, South Carolina, New York, and Pennsylvania.