Eliza Bourner’s work is informed by our cultural and psychological landscapes and how contemporary society’s dysfunctional values of materialism are at odds with our basic human needs. Individualistic values foster comparison and competition pushing us further away from one another. In prioritising consumerism over connection, we become increasingly dissatisfied and burnt out as a society.
Meanwhile, we are bombarded with “spiritual bypassing,” “toxic positivity,” and “like culture,” dismissing yet exacerbating our “age of anxiety.” Bourner’s photographs address this uneasiness inherent in the fast pace of hyper-connected and media saturated contemporary culture, filled with passive entertainment and empty distractions of materialism. Imbued with nostalgia and a cinematic feel, her silent images impart the discomfort of a troubling daydream, with their subtle inclination toward the surreal.
Eliza Bourner started her photography practice assisting fashion photographers in Paris, leading her to pursue a masters in Photography at the University of the Arts London. Her work has been reviewed and featured by international critique including Aesthetica Magazine, The British Journal of Photography, L’Oeil de la Photographie, Vogue Italia and Der Greif.
Her work has been exhibited across Europe and Asia and she has obtained numerous photography awards. Most recently; Aesthetica Art Prize (2022), The British Journal of Photography Edition365 (2021), The Lensculture ‘Home’ Awards (2021), LifeFramer Open Awards (2021), the LensCulture Art Awards Finalist (2021) and The Prix Levallois (2021). She lives and works in London, UK.
Published on May 18, 2022.
