Ren-Hang

Chinese photographer Ren-Hang's work betrays an obsession with bodily forms and an almost perverse want to distort them, often to the point of obscurity. His images recall the fetishism of Guy Bourdin, but are given a high-key kind of modernity. Harsh lighting and white backdrops render the subjects surreal and bizarre. They are allowed no context, and so their bodies too become removed from the scrutinies of reality. We are left free to consider the forms, shapes and textures for their own sake. Whilst there is no denying that many of his images are motivated by sexuality, they are ultimately a study of the human anatomy that lays the body so bare it goes beyond the sexual to somewhere wholly biological. 

http://renhang.org/

Brad McMurray

Brad McMurray is a Vancouver based photographer. His work frames the mundane and forces us to re-examine bleak forgotten spaces that are endlessly recognisable and yet continuously overlooked. His rusty, dusty industrial landscapes are broken and dirty, and yet there seems to be an essential beauty in the world he conjures. McMurray's skill lies in his ability to look beneath the surface and uncover a harmonious composition of lines, shapes and textures.

The photographic equivalent of Duchamp's Fountain and Emin's My Bed, McMurray's work follows in the historical footsteps of art that reconstitutes our perception of everyday life simply by telling us to look at it. That which would otherwise be ignored is given a new existence as the surreal subject of a perfectly composed scene. It might at times seem bizarre or odd, but the overriding sensation is one of déjà vu. We all inhabit these spaces, and yet only by understanding them as McMurray does can we truly see them.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/bemac/

Christopher Schoonover

Christopher Schoonover is a New York based portrait and fashion photographer. One look at his photos reveals a heavy mix of inspirations: they are at once nineties grunge, seventies neo- noir and sixties kitsch. His choice of setting uses the same layering of time periods; there are bingo halls, flamingo wallpapered bathrooms and boardwalks lined with lightbulb studded cinemas. To the unaccustomed this can only be fantasy vintage Americana, but there is no denying its authenticity. New York is distilled into a mood, one that is muted, dark, and yet serene. Beautiful faces stare out of bleak carriages and light plays into the shadows. 

http://cschoonover.com/