Showing posts with label fine art photography. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fine art photography. Show all posts
Friday, June 13, 2008
Charlotte Dumas
Tema participated in the HIV Law Project Exhibit & Auction while I was away, through the auction's website I was introduced to the work of Charlotte Dumas, which like the work of Arno Schildlowski is of course right up my alley, take a look here and here.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
White Horse
White Horse © Tema Stauffer
I mentioned before how much I enjoy the blog of artist Tema Stauffer. I loved the story and image of her June 8, 2008 entry titled "Smiley". It's what life is all about. And I am so happy Tema is recording not only these images but also the stories that accompany them.
And I am (predictably) a little obsessed with the photograph above and the relating blog entry titled "White Horse" -- also to be found on Tema's blog: www.palmaire.blogspot.com.
The "White Horse" image will be included in a group show at Randall Scott Gallery in D.C. this July, along with some other outstanding art by Tema and others.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Dummy Magazin & Arno Schidlowski
When I flew back to New York from Hamburg this week at the airport I was browsing for some German magazine to read and take with me. I am not that excited about editorial anymore, so much of it has become boring, but I had hopes that perhaps I would find something exciting.
And I did: The "Tiere (Animal) issue of Dummy Magazin(e).
The cover caught my eye and after reading the entire magazine (now that is rare!) and absorbing all of it's visual content, I suspect this magazine would hold my attention no matter what topic. It's frank and it does not shy away from controversial & thought-provoking discourse. It's set-up similar to Big magazine (one topic per magazine and interesting photography), except there is lots more writing, the paper is n0t as extravagant and it has a kinder price tag.
In this issue of Dummy I came across the familiar work of Robin Schwartz (whose cover made me look at the magazine) and great work by by Alessandra Sanguinetti, and most importantly I discovered the work of Arno Schildlowski.
Animal imagery is difficult to do well. Often it ends up being cheesy and straight forward wildlife photography while beautiful (and great in a book) is not really something I want to hang on my wall.
Arno Schidlowski however captures animals in a different way. In his artist statement (which he was kind enough to email me) for his series titled "Summa" he speaks (very eloquently) about how is work is guided mostly by instinct& spontaneity; because he needs to be able to react to the unpredictable, un-directable animal, but also because an instinctual approach promotes an outcome that separates itself from the accepted & standard portrayal of the subject matter.
From the series "SUMMA" © Arno Schidlowski
Stylistically I love the daring dark palette. I find the minimalism & abstraction clever, because it focuses the attention of the viewer on important elements and allows the imagination (as is the intention of Arno) to fill in the blanks, while creating subtle appealing imagery. There is much unknown to us about the (animal) world and Arno Schidlowski in his work admits it and leaves space for that that we do not know and/or cannot control.
You can see the Summa series at DUMMY galerie in Berlin until June 3, 2008.
If you like this work you might also want to take a look at the work of photographer Tim Flach (a more artisan approch to the subject) and a look at some of my Fauna work.
And I did: The "Tiere (Animal) issue of Dummy Magazin(e).
The cover caught my eye and after reading the entire magazine (now that is rare!) and absorbing all of it's visual content, I suspect this magazine would hold my attention no matter what topic. It's frank and it does not shy away from controversial & thought-provoking discourse. It's set-up similar to Big magazine (one topic per magazine and interesting photography), except there is lots more writing, the paper is n0t as extravagant and it has a kinder price tag.
In this issue of Dummy I came across the familiar work of Robin Schwartz (whose cover made me look at the magazine) and great work by by Alessandra Sanguinetti, and most importantly I discovered the work of Arno Schildlowski.
Animal imagery is difficult to do well. Often it ends up being cheesy and straight forward wildlife photography while beautiful (and great in a book) is not really something I want to hang on my wall.
Arno Schidlowski however captures animals in a different way. In his artist statement (which he was kind enough to email me) for his series titled "Summa" he speaks (very eloquently) about how is work is guided mostly by instinct& spontaneity; because he needs to be able to react to the unpredictable, un-directable animal, but also because an instinctual approach promotes an outcome that separates itself from the accepted & standard portrayal of the subject matter.
From the series "SUMMA" © Arno Schidlowski
Stylistically I love the daring dark palette. I find the minimalism & abstraction clever, because it focuses the attention of the viewer on important elements and allows the imagination (as is the intention of Arno) to fill in the blanks, while creating subtle appealing imagery. There is much unknown to us about the (animal) world and Arno Schidlowski in his work admits it and leaves space for that that we do not know and/or cannot control.
You can see the Summa series at DUMMY galerie in Berlin until June 3, 2008.
If you like this work you might also want to take a look at the work of photographer Tim Flach (a more artisan approch to the subject) and a look at some of my Fauna work.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Tema Stauffer
I always liked the work of the talented Tema Stauffer. There is so much narrative in her work and it makes you want to know the whole story behind the images. Tema's blog let's you follow her creative journey. Take a look at her pictures and words: www.palmaire.blogspot.com
Friday, May 9, 2008
More Diana Scherer
Here are some of my favorite images by the talented Diana Scherer:
"Kudde" ©Diana Scherer
Works from the series "Still-Life"' ©Diana Scherer
Diana was kind enough to let me use these images on my blog and she also directly expressed that it is important to know that no animals were purposefully killed for her work. She also mentioned that viewers have very strong reactions to her work.
This made me think about what exactly it is that touches a nerve with people when they view her work. As I mentioned previously I liked the work, was affected by it and because of my own personal ethics in regard to animal welfare I was concerned with the provenance of the animal bodies.
However I suspect that her frank examination of life and death is what generates such a strong reaction in most people. Diana said while she deals with tragedy & death, her work is really about life. I very much agree. In western society death is the topic hardest to discuss, even though death obviously is a part of life.
Another body of work that came to mind was Amy Stein's celebrated "Domesticated" series. My understanding is that Ms.Stein used taxidermied animals for her imagery, but her use of dead animals caused no negative reactions.
Diana's work is beautiful and direct - there is no room for misunderstanding of what she is depicting - and I think this can be difficult for some.
Most people buy their meats in supermarkets and never think of where it came from. When death is shown in movies or on TV it is 'sanitized' and even the news shield the viewers. In the US news for example it is rare to see footage of dead or injured whether they are US citizens or other nationals. While I agree that portrayal of violence should be curbed, I do not think there is enough intelligent discourse regarding death.
"Kudde" ©Diana Scherer
Works from the series "Still-Life"' ©Diana Scherer
Diana was kind enough to let me use these images on my blog and she also directly expressed that it is important to know that no animals were purposefully killed for her work. She also mentioned that viewers have very strong reactions to her work.
This made me think about what exactly it is that touches a nerve with people when they view her work. As I mentioned previously I liked the work, was affected by it and because of my own personal ethics in regard to animal welfare I was concerned with the provenance of the animal bodies.
However I suspect that her frank examination of life and death is what generates such a strong reaction in most people. Diana said while she deals with tragedy & death, her work is really about life. I very much agree. In western society death is the topic hardest to discuss, even though death obviously is a part of life.
Another body of work that came to mind was Amy Stein's celebrated "Domesticated" series. My understanding is that Ms.Stein used taxidermied animals for her imagery, but her use of dead animals caused no negative reactions.
Diana's work is beautiful and direct - there is no room for misunderstanding of what she is depicting - and I think this can be difficult for some.
Most people buy their meats in supermarkets and never think of where it came from. When death is shown in movies or on TV it is 'sanitized' and even the news shield the viewers. In the US news for example it is rare to see footage of dead or injured whether they are US citizens or other nationals. While I agree that portrayal of violence should be curbed, I do not think there is enough intelligent discourse regarding death.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
