William Hundley
Encyclopedia
William Hundley is an American artist born in St. Paul, Minnesota. He lives and works in Austin, Texas
.
In 2006 he began an ongoing series of photographs that he titled “Entoptic Phenomena” in which he photographs people jumping underneath fabrics and other various materials. The instant of the jump can be thought of as super ephemeral sculpture, lasting only a few seconds before reverting to their base components. The resulting photographs appear to have been made by computer manipulation, but Hundley stresses that “they are just photographs” and that there were absolutely no computer applications used in creating the images. He goes on to say that having “acrobatic models” is the key to the success of the imagery. A few of his "Entoptic Phenomena" photographs were featured in the 2007 Texas Biennial in which he was awarded the Juror’s Choice Award.
In 2008 he started a new series of photographs “w/ cheeseburgers” that went on to become wildly popular or “viral” on the internet, primarily due to the photograph “Chihuahua on Cheeseburgers”.
Another series of photographs, entitled “Little Naked Person Storage,” consists of photographs of naked people hiding in various places around the average American household.
In an article on Sight Unseen, Hundley is quoted as saying, “My work started with the influence of Erwin Wurm
and Maurizio Cattelan
, these absurdists. I love the practical-joke nature of it; if I can make humor and beautiful aesthetics come together, that’s the biggest powerhouse I can imagine.”
His photography has been featured in numerous publications and countless blogs and websites. In 2007 Hundley was nominated for Best Artist in the Austin Critics Table Awards.
Though not initially mentioned in the credits, a few of his ideas were re-created in the music video “Heaven Can Wait” by Charlotte Gainsbourg
featuring Beck
. Eventually the director, Keith Schofield
, contacted Hundley to apologize for not crediting his work as “inspiration” for portions of the video.
Although most widely known for his photography, Hundley’s work also includes sculptures and installation and has been exhibited across the US and in Berlin. Recent works have focused on assembled collages and a series of tribal inspired masks with the idea of gathering objects from contemporary culture and using them in a “tribal” way.
He recently contributed to the TEDx event in Austin, TX in February 2011.
In 2011, a Hundley photograph is to be published in Adbusters
magazine and he will also have an exhibition at Show & Tell Gallery in Toronto, Canada.
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
.
In 2006 he began an ongoing series of photographs that he titled “Entoptic Phenomena” in which he photographs people jumping underneath fabrics and other various materials. The instant of the jump can be thought of as super ephemeral sculpture, lasting only a few seconds before reverting to their base components. The resulting photographs appear to have been made by computer manipulation, but Hundley stresses that “they are just photographs” and that there were absolutely no computer applications used in creating the images. He goes on to say that having “acrobatic models” is the key to the success of the imagery. A few of his "Entoptic Phenomena" photographs were featured in the 2007 Texas Biennial in which he was awarded the Juror’s Choice Award.
In 2008 he started a new series of photographs “w/ cheeseburgers” that went on to become wildly popular or “viral” on the internet, primarily due to the photograph “Chihuahua on Cheeseburgers”.
Another series of photographs, entitled “Little Naked Person Storage,” consists of photographs of naked people hiding in various places around the average American household.
In an article on Sight Unseen, Hundley is quoted as saying, “My work started with the influence of Erwin Wurm
Erwin Wurm
Erwin Wurm is an Austrian artist born in Bruck an der Mur / Styria. He currently lives and works in Vienna and Limburg, Austria.Since the late 1980s he has developed an ongoing series of "One Minute Sculptures", in which he poses himself or his models in unexpected relationships with everyday...
and Maurizio Cattelan
Maurizio Cattelan
Maurizio Cattelan is an Italian artist based in New York. He is known for his satirical sculptures, particularly La Nona Ora , depicting the Pope John Paul II struck down by a meteorite....
, these absurdists. I love the practical-joke nature of it; if I can make humor and beautiful aesthetics come together, that’s the biggest powerhouse I can imagine.”
His photography has been featured in numerous publications and countless blogs and websites. In 2007 Hundley was nominated for Best Artist in the Austin Critics Table Awards.
Though not initially mentioned in the credits, a few of his ideas were re-created in the music video “Heaven Can Wait” by Charlotte Gainsbourg
Charlotte Gainsbourg
Charlotte Lucy Gainsbourg is an Anglo-French actress and singer. After releasing an album with her father at the age of fifteen, more than twenty years passed before she released two albums as an adult to commercial and critical success...
featuring Beck
Beck
Beck Hansen is an American musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, known by the stage name Beck...
. Eventually the director, Keith Schofield
Keith Schofield
Keith Schofield is an American director of music video and television commercials based in Los Angeles, California.Schofield received the "Best Rock Video" award at the 2008 UK Music Video Awards, for his direction of Supergrass's "Bad Blood" video...
, contacted Hundley to apologize for not crediting his work as “inspiration” for portions of the video.
Although most widely known for his photography, Hundley’s work also includes sculptures and installation and has been exhibited across the US and in Berlin. Recent works have focused on assembled collages and a series of tribal inspired masks with the idea of gathering objects from contemporary culture and using them in a “tribal” way.
He recently contributed to the TEDx event in Austin, TX in February 2011.
In 2011, a Hundley photograph is to be published in Adbusters
AdBusters
The Adbusters Media Foundation is a Canadian-based not-for-profit, anti-consumerist, pro-environment organization founded in 1989 by Kalle Lasn and Bill Schmalz in Vancouver, British Columbia...
magazine and he will also have an exhibition at Show & Tell Gallery in Toronto, Canada.
External links
- Official Website
- Beale, Scott (2007-10-10) "Jumping Fabric Photography by William Hundley" Laughing Squid
- Bec, Alex (2011-01-26) "William Hundley: Becomes" It's Nice That
- Curcio, Seth (2007-04-15) "William Hundley" Daily Serving
- Fei (2009-10-27) "William Hundley" Beautiful/Decay
- Hudson, Will (2009-12-03) "William Hundley" It's Nice That
- Khemsurov, Monica (2010-11-19) "8 Things: William Hundley, Artist" Sight Unseen
- VVORK "William Hundley"