26 Beautiful But Unsettling Visions Of The Natural World By Jim Naughten

We reached out to Jim Naughten to learn more about his creative process, the interplay between photography and digital art in his work, and how emerging technologies are reshaping his vision of storytelling and reality.

The artist shared that he began his creative journey with painting, later specializing in photography at art school, though he always intended to return to painting. “I’ve never been a ‘decisive moment’ photographer and loved anything that altered or abstracted the image, black and white or cross processing, for example. When Photoshop came along, I found a way to make painterly images, which helped me to develop a style and a voice. I would describe myself as a visual artist, but finally, after a long absence, I’m painting again.”

According to Naughten, with Eremozoic and Biophilia, he has created images that are fictional yet contain elements that feel genuinely real. “The idea is to question our rose-tinted view of the natural world, which is in serious trouble. I’m aiming to create images that are engaging and draw the viewer in, but have a tension where they are not sure what they are looking at. Some people find them very beautiful, others feel they have a sadness and a sense of melancholy.”

With AI and new digital tools changing fast, the way we tell stories through images and think about authenticity is shifting. Naughten described the arrival of AI imaging as nothing short of extraordinary. “It feels as if the ground is moving beneath our feet. I’ve found it exhilarating, fascinating, addictive, disruptive, terrifying, and often tedious. I have never really made images that can be described as ‘authentic,’ so that’s not so important for me in making artworks. It appears to be a useful tool in visual storytelling, in the right hands. Matt Collishaw, Peter Blake, and Cindy Sherman have all made some interesting work. I enjoy the idea of recycling images and working from home, counterintuitively having a much smaller carbon footprint too.”

Since Naughten’s images often feel like visual dreams or alternate realities, we asked him about the purpose behind creating that kind of atmosphere. “I like images which are painterly and fictional but feature elements of reality so the viewer is not quite sure what they are looking at, or how they are made. There’s a tension between truth and fiction, perhaps. There’s a great line in David L***h’s ‘Lost Highway’ when the main character explains why he won’t make videos: ‘I like to remember things the way I remember them, not the way they actually happened.’ So I like visual dreams, and I think working with AI, or painting, are great mediums to explore with.”