Picturesque portraits by WhiteWall Ambassador Suxing Zhang

Submitted by WhiteWall Team 

Mirror © Suxing Zhang, WhiteWall Ambassador.

The WhiteWall Ambassadors are among the most talented and influential photographers worldwide, and each of them has their own visual idiom. The genre “Fine Art & Portrait“ focuses on the Chinese photographer Suxing Zhang. The oeuvre of Suxing Zhang consists of Fine Art photographs and conceptual portraits that reflect a variety of emotions. He uses the poses and facial expressions of his models to express multifaceted concepts.

Vortex © Suxing Zhang.

Due to their composition, structure and exposure, the works often resemble paintings. The WhiteWall ambassador plays with floral elements and creates artworks with impressionistic and sometimes surrealist elements. It is not surprising that Zhang has completed vocational training as a painter prior to his photographic career. The way he works with light and shade shows a certain connection with the paintings of the old masters such as Rembrandt van Rijn. During the conceptual stage of his pictures, Zhang, who was born in the late 1980s, rather sees himself as a painter with a camera and less as a typical photographer.

Seed © Suxing Zhang.

The technology behind the artworks

For his complex works, Zhang uses different technical approaches: “For some works I use double exposures, for others such as in my photo series ‘Hua’ I photographed the themes separately and combined them in Photoshop via ‘Dodge & burn’ and merging mode” he says in the interview. He has consequently chosen an approach that comes close to painting and that enables him to work flexibly and creatively.

Umbrella © Suxing Zhang.

Knot © Suxing Zhang.

With regard to his equipment, Zhang relies on the camera models Canon EOS 5D Mark III and Sony Alpha 7 III. Although he mostly photographs digitally, his themes have been inspired by conventional photography up to now. The enormous image definition supported by digital photography is not always his utmost priority. “Personally, I am not very enthusiastic about this feature and appreciate the smoothness created by films, the subtle transition in shade and colors as well as the film grain” Zhang says.

Sparks © Suxing Zhang.

Only the best: presentation in gallery quality

Although his training as a painter is reflected in his portraits up to present, Zhang now focuses on the expressive power of photography: “When I paint, I create something of an empty canvas. Photography, however, gives me the opportunity to tell stories and to transport emotions based on reality. In this respect, it can be more powerful than painting.”

Prologue © Suxing Zhang - from the photo series "Sahā World".

To present his themes, Zhang uses the exquisite acrylic glass laminations and photo canvases from WhiteWall to emphasize the synthesis of painting and photography. “Personally, I like prints that have a high visual expressiveness similar to paintings” the photo artist says. WhiteWall has not only convinced him with excellent quality but also with their broad know-how and the collaboration with the experts at the lab. The artistic appeal is reinforced by a handmade manufactory frame – the perfect finish for galleries and private collectors.