Barcode-02. Photograph

Stuart Weston has been a creative photographer for over 25 years. His Client list is long and varied. In recent years Stuart has divided his time between creating contemporary photographic images and painting. The "Hasselblad Masters Award", one of the most prestigious awards in the industry, has made a reputation over the years by celebrating the best in both established and rising photographic talent. The Masters Awards are given in recognition of a photographer's contribution to the art of photography. Past Hasselblad Masters include renowned artists such as Albert Watson, Anton Corbjin and Patrick Demarchelier. Stuart Weston was awarded the Hasselblad Masters Award in 2007. Stuart's career has facilitated a great deal of traveling. Whilst Stuart's mother agency has always been in London, Stuart has lived and worked in Miami, New York, Paris and Milan. Stuart currently spends his time between London and Rye on the south coast of England. The subject explored in the "Altered States" collection of is for many controversial, and one that has fascinated him since childhood. Many people remember having had a similar experience at some time in their life, often at a time of stress or anxiety, sometimes for no apparent reason. Few experience the phenomenon over extended periods, fewer claim to practice the phenomenon at will. Stuart uses the term images in preference to photography because he enjoys mixing painting and layered graphics in a lot of his work. Painting techniques dominate some of the images in this collection. Stuart says "not only do I find applying paint to canvas cathartic, I believe some of the ideas expressed in the "Altered States" collection benefit from morphing the digital and organic media to express a feeling of other worldliness". The phenomenon is well documented in anthropological or ethnographic (the branch of anthropology that deals with the scientific description of specific human culture) literature on shamanism, classical philosophy and in various myths and religious scriptures. Yet despite the vast amount of material documenting the phenomenon, contemporary society regards such adventures with a great deal of skepticism. The phenomenon Stuart refers to is often described as "Astral Projection". This is when an individual believes they experience a separation of body and spirit.