A moment, a brief period of time, an instant. Protected from the event in a hair’s breadth vacuum: a state of weightlessness before impact, the tension before release, the realization before insight. These moments, as they manifest in the following photo series, both on an abstract and physical level, bear possibilities. Possibilities of wonder, of faltering, of silence. And possibilities of beauty.
Text: Viktoria Kirner, Curated: David Meran
Mario Kiesenhofer: „Indoor – Magnum, Budapest“ 2015
„When I found the empty bed with the two pillows in the Magnum Sauna in Budapest, I instantly had to think of the work “Untitled” (billboard of an empty bed) by Félix González-Torres."
Mario Kiesenhofer took this shot as part of his ongoing series Indoor at the Magnum Sauna in Budapest, just before the doors of the sex club opened and the empty spaces filled up with guests. For this series the artist travels to metropolises like New York, Tokyo, London, Paris, Berlin, Budapest, and Vienna to examine gay bars, clubs, and saunas with his camera—an investigation of the queer topography of urban and virtual spaces. Kiesenhofer presents these insights behind gray-tinted smoked glass. This filter lends back some intimacy to the now exposed spaces, while adding a hyperreal touch—black areas become even blacker, and the reflecting glass incorporates the spectators into the work.
Jakob Lena Knebl: „Ma Poupée" 2018
„I got to know Bellmer’s former assistant, who made the dolls for him. The moment before the photo, when I entered his studio and saw the doll sitting peacefully on a chair, was a very touching one. Being close to such a precious work of art history, holding it so tight to my body felt like being very close to history."
The artist Jakob Lena Knebl with a doll by the famous photographer, painter, and sculptor Hans Bellmer, who became known for his works which almost exclusively deal with erotic depictions of female anatomy. Bellmer’s dolls have been shown at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, among other places.
Anna Breit: „Untitled“ 2017
„My photos are kind of a staged diary—a diary about my friends, the people I am surrounded with, a certain time, generation, and obviously me."
The images by the young photographer Anna Breit are primarily about people and their relationships. She writes about her photo: “The photo was made on my way home from a club and reminds me of the early days with my boyfriend. It’s from a time when I documented just about everything around me with my point-and-shoot camera, which I always had with me. Many photos from that time have a snapshot quality. In the meanwhile my approach to photography has changed, but I still carry my camera around with me all the time, it helps me to preserve memories.”
Gonzalo Lebrija: „Entre la vida y la muerte“ 2008
Time stands still in the works of the successful Mexican photo artist Gonzalo Lebrija. His images are snapshots, captured frozen seconds, which probe our perception of time and magnify the distance between past and future.
Niko Havranek: „In Formation“ 2017
„I’m fascinated by the training for the one moment."
The Viennese portrait photographer and photo journalist Niko Havranek submitted his images to our open call. He wrote the following lines about his series In Formation: “At first, it was the peculiar shop window decoration of a shop selling dancing shoes that caught my attention. I was fascinated by the elaborate make-up and clothing style—this specific idea of beauty. A former school mate helped me to follow the activities of a competition dance club. At the first contest I was already impressed by the strong team spirit. During the first training I photographed I noticed how great the pressure was on each individual to deliver the best team performance. Every movement has to be straight to the point, for the chain is only as strong as its weakest link.”
Rita Nowak: „Yet Luminous“ 2018
The photo by the London-based Austrian photo artist Rita Nowak was taken in a castle—in Carinthia. Is that really important, she asks herself, and sends us a poem by the Russian poet and writer Boris Pasternak along with it.
Daniel Gordon: „Bartlett Pear“ 2018
The New York artist Daniel Gordon plays with the moment of realization in his works. From his collages of photographic images found online he crafts three-dimensional tableaus, which he then photographs once again as the basis for new works. He is interested in the dualities that often exist parallel in his images—masculine and feminine, the whole and the break. Imperfections in the form of dabs of glue or ripped corners remain visible. Deconstruction and re-assemblage open up possibilities for new characters and relationships.
This shoot was published in the print edition #2 “The Beauty Issue”. You can order the magazine in our SHOP.
