The worlds of surreal fantasy

New realms Tanya Combrinck meets three artists whose work enters darkly surreal unrealities of mystery and magic

- Tanya Combrinck

Illogical and unnerving scenes have long been used by surrealists to depict the machinations of the unconscious mind, and taking inspiration from this genre has opened up these artists' own personal dreamworld.

Concept artist Mélissa Houpert's journey into the unreal began with a painting by dystopian surrealist Zdzisław Beksinski. "It haunted me for a long time," she says. "I found something in it that I had not seen anywhere else." Although the art had affected her profoundly, it took a while for Mélissa to feel confident enough to put something of this into her own work; she thought it wasn't what people wanted her to create, and doing so didn't feel legitimate to her. "I painted a lot of environments and I always loved the melancholic feeling they had. But one day, a client whose work I admire came to me for an album cover and it gave me a chance to express myself, and to believe in myself. It was the kick I needed to trust in my process."

A GATEWAY TO INFINITY

Studying literature nurtured her fascination for certain symbols and themes, which she developed and explored through her art. "The image of the tunnel, the portal, and the mirror are important to me. I love the way they lead us to another universe, another way of thinking, or just another reality. I like the concept of transition," she says.

Cosmic elements feature strongly in Mélissa's work; she enjoys the idea of them as a gateway to somewhere else that is beyond our world. "It's the huge infinity. I have always loved the sensation of being nothing compared to the stars and the galaxy," she says.