© Dan Marcolina, Silent Witnesses Diptych, Ai Transformed Image from Original, 16 x 16 inches, 2024
January 15, 2025
Amie Potsic interviewed Dan Marcolina, a Philadelphia-based fine artist blending photography and Ai technology to push the boundaries of creativity.
“This series of images called Complicated Relationships explores the dynamics of various interrelationships both between individuals and their environment. By using original photographs which are stylized and juxtaposed through physical and artificial means I try to emphasize the harmonies and imbalances that can occur between both.
My Ai photo-synthesis process always starts with an original camera image that is carefully composed and sometimes processed to capture my artistic intent. That image is fed into an AI portal, sometimes with the addition of text and or additional image prompts. The AI uses that new input to build more renditions. I then curate the best option by considering the balance between composition/concept.
This process can be repeated many times until the original idea of the photo is strengthened or even completely transmuted to unexpected places. It is a curious journey, similar to street photography, searching for the right moments to intersect. The resulting file is then re-scaled with AI and color tuned with more corrections or additions in Photoshop. The end result is work that contains the original DNA of the photo, combined with a visual metamorphosis conducted by the artist.
This new work has been pushed to another level, when scanned with your phone, the prints in the show come to life and offer immersive interactive moments. By using Augmented Reality and Virtual reality the images stores are deepened.”
Dan Marcolina. Image courtesy of the artist.
Dan Marcolina is a Philadelphia-based artist, designer, and photographer with over 45 years of experience blending traditional and digital image creation. He co-founded Marcolina Design, one of the city’s first all-digital design firms, renowned for its innovative use of AR, VR, and AI in crafting immersive experiences for clients like Adobe, Apple, and the Discovery Channel. An early adopter of Photoshop, Marcolina is celebrated for his inventive photo collages and design work and has lectured on digital photography and AI artistry for National Geographic and Adobe. His work has been exhibited nationwide, featured in publications, and is part of the Woodmere Museum of Art's collection. A pioneer in mobile photo manipulation, he authored iPhone Obsessed and continues to explore the intersection of technology and art to push creative boundaries.
DAN MARCOLINA
Exhibition and Lecture on February 10, 2025 at the University of Delaware, Willard Hall
© Dan Marcolina, Bee Keeping in the Future, Ai Transformed Image from Original, 16 x 16 inches, 2024
© Dan Marcolina, Untilted, Ai Transformed Image from Original, 16 x 16 inches, 2024
© Dan Marcolina, Extracting Feelings into Form Diptych, Ai Transformed Image from Original, 16 x 16 inches, 2024
© Dan Marcolina, Distilling Essence, Ai Transformed Image from Original, 16 x 16 inches, 2024
© Dan Marcolina, Nesting Instincts, Ai Transformed Image from Original, 16 x 16 inches, 2024
© Dan Marcolina, Masks of Time, Ai Transformed Video from Original Images, 2024
© Dan Marcolina, Inevitable Weakness, Ai Transformed video from Original Images, 2024
To learn more about Dan Marcolina visit, marcolina.com/diffused
Banner Image: © Dan Marcolina, Lost Hart, Ai Transformed Image from Original, 16 x 16 inches, 2024