Wednesday, 23 March 2011

John Stezaker

Film Portrait (Incesion) V, 2005, 19.5 x 14cm, Collage


I went to see Stezaker's exhibition at the White Chapel gallery last week just before it ended. Unfortunately i wasn't able to take any pictures as we weren't allowed but thankfully a lot of his images are accessible online. I have to say, at first glance i was thinking 'is this really it?' but after walking around i actually started to like what i was seeing. I mean, they ARE just pictures layered onto each other but the way he does that fits so well both in composition and sometimes scale. The kinds of feeling you get looking at his images are a bit disturbing since there’s an element of slicing through the faces. Just the cut of layered picture made me feel like that. But it works well artistically and i actually think it looks fascinating. I especially like the fact that his work consists of vintage film stills and postcards; the idea of mixing old images to create a fresh meaning through precise juxtapositions. I’ve always been into photomontages and collages which is perhaps why i really like his style since it’s a new approach of photomontage to me.

I stumbled across this advertising campaign for a Lithuanian bookshop called Mint Vinetu which in some way reminded me of john Stezaker’s style in the idea of an image completing another image.




John Stezaker at the White Chapel Gallery

John Stezaker's Artist Profile from The Saatchi Gallery

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