the making of angelo musco's human body photographic collages

detailed view of ‘xylem’ by musco, 2011 metallic c-prints mounted between aluminum image via inspiration green all other images courtesy the artist

the photographic portfolio of angelo musco, an italian-born and new york city-based artist, is comprised of elaborate, large-scale panels picturing millions of bodies captured in various formations. musco then overlays human images in order to construct a structure highly detailed photographic work picturing a structure built from these forms. at a distance, the image appears to be something from nature such as a tree, nest, honeycomb or web, while at close-range, the viewer recognizes the interconnected chains and masses of nude bodies which make up each greater structure.

designboom has compiled a behind-the-scenes view of this intricate photographic portfolio and process, focusing on ‘xylem’, one of musco’s most recent compositions. 

‘xylem’, 2011 metallic c-prints mounted between aluminum

‘xylem’ is taken from the classical greek word for wood. the xylem tissue is recognized as that which transports nutrients and water beginning from the soil into the roots to the trunk and leaves of every tree. the project is built from millions of human bodies, representative of the energetic connection between nature and humanity. the piece appears to be a levitating forest, the roots and branches equally exposed and constructed from million nude bodies.

the production of the large-scale image began in june of 2010 and was completed the following year after three photo shoots and hundreds of models who were photographed in three separate locations in the artist’s NYC base. after capturing photos of the group of bare bodies in various formations, musco compiled the images, digitally editing over 1 million bodies in order to form the intricate forest scene.

‘xylem’ alternate view image via inspiration green

making of ‘xylem’ by operaprena

the impressive intricacy of ‘xylem is also observed in the entirety of musco’s portfolio. we have included several works representative of the artist’s style and process.

‘areana’, 2009, metallic c-print mounted between aluminum and plexi-glass, 8’x16′

detailed view of ‘areana’

‘averna’ by angelo musco, 2010, triptych, metallic c-prints mounted between aluminum and plexi-glass, 4’x8′

‘hadal’, 2009 metallic c-print mounted between aluminum and plexi-glass, 12’x24′

detail of ‘hadal’

explanation of the artist’s general process by musco

LA-based artist cecelia webber adopts a similar technique as musco in her artwork, compositing images of human figures into detailed recreations of flowers, insects, and butterflies. see designboom’s original article here.

via trendland