Isabelle Hayeur - Nadia, from Model Homes

Isabelle Hayeur is a Canadian artist who creates intriguing, metaphorical landscapes by digitally manipulating photographs. The subtle illusions in her photographs often play with the ways in which the environment is presented in advertising and other media. In an interview with Mason Journal, she says “In my earlier works, like the Uncertain Landscapes series, I use digital photomontage to show what we don’t see in our artificial spaces by confronting dreamscapes with disenchanted spaces in the same image. In the Model Homes series, I try to highlight our usage of counterfeit cultural values, postmodern pastiches and synthetic construction material. By creating a hyper reality that reveals the fake and the absurd, I am hoping to show the misrepresentation of these manufactured spaces. I use the digital illusion to highlight the fabricated “lies” that we encounter in reality.”

In the artist statement on her website, Hayeur provides a compelling description of the ideas behind her art practice:

“We have the privilege of constructing our world: the world we inhabit and the world that inhabits us. This is, of course, not a new phenomenon, but we have unprecedented means for achieving these ends. We give form to worlds that were once impossible and even unthinkable. We act on our surroundings and intervene in the course of events as never before. The universe in which we live has become malleable. It seems clear that our visions and lifestyles have a much greater impact on the world we occupy than in the past. It thus becomes particularly important that we assume responsibility for the landscapes we create and the worlds we imagine. These are the reflections that have informed my work over the past several years.”