萊西・萊恩：發現水下夢境的媒介
萊西・萊恩（Lexi Laine）是從事攝影媒介工作的英國藝術家。基於英國的南海岸，Lexi致力於在全球一些最獨特的地區創造空靈的水下場景。 她已經花了幾年的時間作為自由潛水者進行訓練，以延長在水下停留的時間。 Lexi無需使用潛水設備，而是選擇屏住呼吸進行所有工作。 她的照片常常描繪出一位女性或多位女性，其中以熟練的自由潛水者為主題。
Lexi Laine is a British artist working in the medium of photography. Based on the south coast of the UK, Lexi specializes in creating ethereal underwater scenes in some of the most unique and pristine locations around the globe. She has spent several years training as a freediver in order to extend the amount of time she can stay underwater. Rather than using scuba equipment, Lexi chooses instead to undertake all of her work on a single breath hold. More often than not her photographs depict a single female or multiple women, featuring highly skilled freedivers as the subjects.
在整個藝術家的作品集中，都能看到反映出人類對海洋環境的影響的作品。在她的創作中也經常發現17和18世紀巴洛克繪畫、幻想和民間傳說的影響。Lexi喜歡探索超現實的矛盾，模糊界限，並使用攝影作為其創造超凡脫俗的情感藝術的手段。
Works responding to the human impact on the marine environment can be seen throughout the artist’s portfolio. Influences of 17th and 18th century baroque painting, fantasy and folklore can also often be found in her images. Lexi enjoys explorations of surreal contradictions, blurring boundaries and using photography as a means to create otherworldly, emotive art.
萊西於2001年至2004年在坎特伯雷（UCA）創意藝術大學學習文學學士學位，自畢業以來，她一直從事攝影師和藝術家的職業生涯。 2020年，Lexi被授予iCanvas攝影獎「美麗奇異藝術獎」。在2018年和2019年的連續兩年中，她被英國領先的培訓機構Photography Farm授予「年度最佳圖像」獎。 同樣在2019年，Lexi受到Sony英國公司的讚助，製作了一段短片，講述她創作過程的幕後紀錄片，名為《Under The Surface》。
Lexi studied BA Fine Art at UCA (University for the Creative Arts) Canterbury in 2001-2004 and since graduating has been building her career as a photographer and artist. In 2020 Lexi was awarded the winner of The Beautiful Bizarre Art Prize iCanvas Photography Award. For two years running, in 2018 and 2019 she was awarded ‘Image of the Year’ by leading UK training provider, Photography Farm. Also in 2019 Lexi was sponsored by Sony UK to create a short behind the scenes documentary of her practice titled ‘Under The Surface’. The project was undertaken in the magical cenotes of the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico.
「遇見她時，如果遇見她，您會因為猜測她屬於地球而被原諒。 她呼吸著空氣，並像凡人一樣在世上來來去去。 但是，如果您看到在水底世界的她，便會明白這是她的血統，而且總有一天她會回到她的起源、她的世界。」——Lexi Laine
“When you meet her, if you meet her, you’d be forgiven for guessing she belongs on the earth. She breathes the air and walks around like she is the same as us mortals. But if you see her down here in her underworld, you’ll understand that this is her origin and where she will always return” Lexi Laine
「透過攝影，我試圖捕捉另一個世界的感覺。我喜歡探索對比：我創作的圖像中描繪了自然水下環境的脫俗之美，但往往帶有看起來不協調或是獵奇的元素。
Through my photography, I aim to capture the feeling of being in another world. I enjoy exploring contrasts; creating images that portray the otherworldly beauty of natural underwater environments but often with elements that seem incongruous.
我非常欣賞文藝復興時期和巴洛克藝術家的審美觀，以及他們使用光線的手法，在所描繪的場景中添加戲劇性的方式。 我很想創造一種視覺敘事，使我圖像中的女人成為超現實故事中的角色。 而且，我創建的圖像通常會有一段明顯的旅程；在某些情況下，她漂浮在燈光下，或是從一個世界到另一個世界的陰森恐怖的場景。 在其他場景中，她正在被吞噬，脆弱性的表現和表現出令人難以置信的水的力量。 我喜歡表現出她的淡然和憂鬱的感覺。我的目的是將觀看者帶入這些夢境，以便他們可以在這些圖像中找到自己的恐懼和無畏。」
I greatly admire the aesthetic of renaissance and baroque artists and the way they used light to add drama to the scenes they depicted. I am drawn to creating a visual narrative where the women in my images become characters from surreal stories. And there’s often an apparent journey in the images I create; in some she floats towards the light in an eerie suggestion of traveling from one world to the next. In other scenes, she is being consumed, a representation of vulnerability and a reminder of the incredible force of water. I am interested in showing her feelings of euphoria and of melancholy. My aim is to transport the viewer into these dreamscapes so that they can find in these images, their own fears and fearlessness.
「我相信，海洋保護是我們當今面臨的最緊迫的挑戰之一，通過諸如我的作品《單次使用的地球》和《幽靈網》，我探索了人類作為人類保護世界這一部分所應承擔的責任。這些照片的拍攝位置對我來說非常重要。 我喜歡在公海工作，並捕捉我們這個星球上未被充分認識的部分的廣闊深度、黑暗和美麗。我還經常在墨西哥的遺跡中拍攝一系列象徵性和神秘性的坑洼，這些坑坑洼窪對我而言就像是空靈的水下森林。我選擇在自由潛水時進行所有這些項目，因為它使我與拍攝的人以及工作環境有了更好的聯繫。我們一起經歷了屏住呼吸並潛入水下世界的快感。在這裡，我感到自己最強烈的生命力，也是與自己的藝術成分一同共舞。」
I believe that ocean conservation is one of the most pressing challenges that we face today and through pieces such as ‘Single Use Planet’ and ‘Ghost Nets’ I explore the responsibility we as humans have in protecting this part of our world. The locations in which I make these photos are very important to me. I love to work in the open sea in order to capture the vast depths, darkness and beauty in this under-appreciated part of our planet. I also frequently shoot in the cenotes of Mexico, a series of symbolic and mysterious sinkholes which feel to me like ethereal underwater forests. I choose to undertake all of these projects whilst freediving because it gives me a better connection with the people that I photograph and also with the environment in which I work. Together we experience the thrill of holding our breath and diving deep down into our underworld. It is here that I feel the most alive and in touch with myself as an artist.
Source: Lexi Laine
