Aesthetica Issue 95 by Aesthetica Magazine

Aesthetica

THE ART & CULTURE MAGAZINE

www.aestheticamagazine.com

Issue 95 June / July 2020

POWERFUL NARRATIVES

A NEW CONVERSATION

TAPPING INTO NATURE

Lina Bo Bardi offers vital lessons for rebuilding and reconnection

Photographs that transcend wider cultural and linguistic boundaries

Decolonising the art world with radically performative imagery

Japanese artist Makoto Azuma highlights the beauty of plants

UK £5.95 Europe €11.95 USA $15.49

DESIGN AS RESOLUTION

Aesthetica 1

2 Aesthetica

Aesthetica 3

4 Aesthetica

Aesthetica 5

6 Aesthetica

Aesthetica 7

8 Aesthetica

talk to us. Book Your Aesthetica Portfolio Review Today Speak with Aestheticaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Editors about your work. Book a one-hour session to discuss themes, concepts, funding opportunities and applications. aestheticamagazine.com/talktous

Consultation | Business Planning | Idea Generation | Expert Advice Aesthetica 9

10 Aesthetica

Welcome Editor’s Note

On the Cover Millennial pink has become a global design trend. Diane Villadsen’s photographs are a visual sensation that explore this, feeding our appetite for candy coloured compositions and geometric styling. The images focus on shades that are both peaceful and alluring. (p.58) Cover Image: Diane Villadsen. Model: Miki Hamano. Location: San Francisco, CA. (2017).

This moment in time is extraordinary. Every day, I take a long cycle ride around the city of York, UK, where I live, watching as all my memories unfold in front of me in the most cinematic way. All of them are so transient but so meaningful right now. Around each corner is a yet another recollection: restaurants I frequent; where I get my hair cut; where I got proposed to. These activities are all on hold. I consider myself lucky. I have everything I could need during this lockdown – food, a lovely home, family, friends and the brilliant Aesthetica team. Everyone I know is healthy and that is absolutely the most important thing. There are times when life can feel almost normal, but then something like this happens, and you remember that there is nothing familiar about the situation. Still, I am maintaining a positive attitude. This moment will pass. Society must recalibrate, pressing the re-set button and trying harder to create a fairer and more connected world. I know it’s incredibly optimistic, but that’s how I roll. Perhaps, we can use this time to actually do something about the climate emergency? This issue is entitled Recalibration. It’s about realignment and hope. As humans, we need to understand our place in the world and the fragility of this ecosystem. A major retrospective of Lina Bo Bardi was due to take place in Chicago, so we survey the importance of this, looking at Bo Bardi’s philosophy on architecture and rebuilding. As cities and urban spaces need to change, her oeuvre teaches us about how we must always interrogate the present in order to preserve the future. Meanwhile, South African photographer Athi-Patra Ruga asks us to decolonise the art world and deconstruct power structures. The work is simply arresting; it is calling for an end to the pageantry of nationalism and its rhetoric. We also bring you contemplative photography that traverses genres, styles and boundaries. These are works that will inspire and bring a moment of joy. Meanwhile, our cover photographer Diane Villadsen soothes our souls with millennial pink and a good sense of humour. Stay safe, and enjoy! Cherie Federico

Aesthetica 11

104

12 Aesthetica

contents

Art 14 News A new podcast explores the lives of five sculptors; London Festival of Architecture moves online; Carnegie Museum extends a survey of An-My Lê.

20 10 to See Institutions across the world have expanded their digital content, including interviews, gallery tours and virtual gardens. Log in and get creative.

24 Design as Resolution How can architecture create a more inclusive and connected world? Lina Bo Bardi offers vital lessons about how to rebuild and repurpose.

30 A Visual Playground Anna Devís and Daniel Rueda's images redefine the conventions of structural photography with an aesthetic inspired by metropolitan living.

42 Towards the Horizon Six N. Five develops the idea of “non-spaces” that captivate the attention, providing a visual oasis that is neither real or artificial; inside or outside.

52 Powerful Narratives World Photography Organisation outlines the principles behind successful visual storytelling through technical and conceptual innovation.

58 Colour and Motif Diane Villadsen builds on our appetite for candy coloured compositions. Dreamlike tones move from blush pink and lemon yellow to soft lilac.

70 A New Conversation Through bold costume, colours, pageantry and performance, Athi-Patra Ruga asks meaningful questions about how to decolonise the art sector.

76 Body as Performance Photographs from Nana Yaw Oduro provide the manifestation of thought and emotion, expressed through bright colours and physical movements.

86 Tapping into Nature Humanity's interactions with nature are swiftly being rewritten. Makoto Azuma investigates this idea through large-scale botanical installations.

92 Reality Usurped KangHee Kim distils the everyday, transforming it into something altogether different and utterly fantastical – encouraging imagination in viewers.

104 Portraits in Isolation Julia Keil’s self-portraits reference works from the worlds of film and fine art to express familiar experiences whilst living in global lockdown.

Class of 2020

Film

Music

116 York St John University This year, graduates will not get Degree Shows, so we've teamed up with York St John University to present a showcase of 12 students in print.

122 Taking New Direction Boys on Film returns with thought-provoking and pulsating array of queer stories told by a host of extraordinarily talented filmmakers.

124 Return to the Homeland Lil Halima transitions from bedroom song-writing to studio work alongside seasoned professionals – an impressive career start for the 21-year-old.

Books

Artists’ Directory

Last Words

126 Spontaneous Forms Last year, Bernar Venet unveiled the greatest piece of his life. The 79-year-old is celebrated for the use of mathematical lines and curves.

139 Inside this Issue Practitioners included in this edition are focused on the realisation of the self, exploring a sense of connection with other people and the wider world.

146 Anna Radchenko The artist and filmmaker reflects on how the home – generally perceived as a safe haven – gradually begins to feel smaller and tighter.

Aesthetica Magazine is trade marked worldwide. © Aesthetica Magazine Ltd 2020.

The Aesthetica Team: Editor: Cherie Federico Assistant Editor: Kate Simpson Digital Content Writer: Eleanor Sutherland Digital Assistant: Saffron Ward

Advertisement Enquiries: Megan Hobson (0044) (0)844 568 2001 advertising@aestheticamagazine.com

Advertising Coordinator: Megan Hobson Marketing Coordinator: Hannah Thomas Artists’ Directory Coordinator: Katherine Smira

Artists’ Directory Enquiries: Katherine Smira (0044) (0)844 568 2001 directory@aestheticamagazine.com

Published by Cherie Federico and Dale Donley. Aesthetica Magazine PO Box 371, York, YO23 1WL, UK (0044) (0)844 568 2001 Newstrade Distribution: Warners Group Publications plc. Gallery & Specialist Distribution: Central Books. Printed by Warners Midlands plc.

Production Director: Dale Donley Operations Manager: Cassandra Weston Designer: Laura Tordoff Technical Coordinator: Andy Guy

Subscriptions: subscriptions@aestheticamagazine.com (0044) (0)844 568 2001 General Enquiries: info@aestheticamagazine.com

Contributors: Diane Smyth, Thomas McMullan, Beth Webb, Charlotte R-A, Gunseli Yalcinkaya.

Press Releases: pr@aestheticamagazine.com

Reviewers: James Mottram, Shirley Stevenson, Matt Swain, Kyle Bryony, Louis Soulard, Eleanor Sutherland.

Follow us: aestheticamagazine.com facebook.com/aestheticamagazine twitter.com/AestheticaMag pinterest.com/AestheticaMag instagram.com/AestheticaMag

Aesthetica 13

Rana Brgum, No. 332 Marcol, 2012. Credit: Modus Operandi.

news

Through the Glass Ceiling SCULPTING LIVES “Although sculpture is definitely having a moment in terms of greater visibility (with well-attended events such as the Fourth Plinth, Frieze Sculpture Park and the enduring popularity of Yorkshire Sculpture Park) it still gets less attention than other art forms. However, humans have such a visceral response to sculpture – it is in our physical space after all.” Jo Baring, Director of the Ingram Collection of Modern British & Contemporary Art (quoted above), and Sarah Turner, Deputy Director for Research at the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art in London (part of Yale University) launch Sculpting Lives. This new podcast series focuses on five key female practitioners that have made outstanding contributions to the landscape of sculpture, comprising Dame Barbara Hepworth, Elisabeth Frink (RA), Kim Lim, Phyllida Barlow (RA) and Rana Begum (RA). Through insightful interviews, Baring and Turner give listeners access to the “intimate soundscapes of both public and private worlds” – featuring curators, friends and family of the artists. The first episode looks at Barbara Hepworth (1903-1975), visiting the places in which she lived and worked, whilst exploring why she remains such a powerful influence in the sector today. Episode two foregrounds Elisabeth Frink (1930-1993), who was born into an army family, with a childhood overshadowed by WWII. This experience of conflict, and other upheavals of the 20th century, led her to

14 Aesthetica

ask fundamental questions about the nature of humanity. In “Sculpting Lives dives an art world increasingly dominated by abstraction, Frink into the complex remained resolute in the commitment to a consistent sense challenges that these of style and use of material: working figuratively with bronze. artists have faced over Moving into the late 20th century, the third episode exam- the last 100 years, ines the absence of ethnic minorities in public institutions providing commentary through the lens of Singapore-born Kim Lim (b. 1944). De- on the landscape today. spite a successful career, including having 80 works in UK Each 45-minute public collections, the artist has been left out of the histo- episode navigates the ries of 20th century British Art. This episode asks challenging uneven ground of questions about how we can realistically widen the param- building a career.” eters of diversity in the sector, and under whose terms? The final two episodes look at Phyllida Barlow (b. 1944) and Rana Begum (b. 1977) respectively, bringing listeners firmly into the 21st century through big names that have pushed the boundaries of material, whilst considering the complexities of biography, race and identity. Sculpting Lives dives into the complex challenges that these five artists have faced over the last 100 years whilst providing commentary on the landscape today. Each 45-minute episode navigates the uneven ground of building a career. Sculpting Lives Podcast, Whilst universities and galleries are closed, it has never been Ongoing more important for practitioners to consider new ways of getting their work out there. Baring and Turner address this with instagram.com/ a well of inspiration. Grab some earphones and listen in. sculptinglives

Expansive Programming LONDON FESTIVAL OF ARCHITECTURE restored 1932 Villa Winternitz in Prague – the last project of “As we spend more time Adolf Loos, the Czech-born pioneer of modern architecture. at home, the priorities Led by architect Adam Gebrain and Josef Winternitz’s great- for many people's grandson David Cysar, the tour reveals the tumultuous living situations are history of the villa and its owners. See what it's like to walk being forced to change, through Loos’ Raumplan – a spatial concept that divides a from the value being building into interconnected multi-level spaces – featuring a placed on outside complex interior that contrasts with the villa’s austere façade. locations such as Meanwhile, Anise Gallery, London, presents an exhibition gardens and balconies, that explores humanity’s capacity to transform both domestic to the importance of and work spaces. The project invites artists and architects, genuine living spaces.” writers and photographers to bring the outside in through the use of a homemade camera obscura. Also on show is a six-video installation from Israeli artist Jasmin Vardi. These films blur the boundaries between presence and absence, dealing with the practices of management, control and use of institutional influence over the individual. A hospital arena, brought to the screen by Vardi, is ultramodern and sterile. All patients, maintenance and medical staff are missing. Moving into themes of beauty and hope, peace and London Festival reconstruction, there’s a screening and talk by young Syrian of Architecture Online, architects who graduated from Aleppo University during 1-30 June the war. The films share heart-warming stories from zones of conflict, sending messages about the resilience of the londonfestivalof human condition as we try to rebuild cities after conflict. architecture.org

Dulwich Pavilion 2017. Image couretsy of Joakim Boren.

“The lockdown has definitely affected the dynamics of where and how we live. As we spend more time at home, the priorities for many people’s living situations are being forced to change, from the value being placed on outside locations – such as gardens and balconies – to the importance of ‘genuine living spaces’ and natural lighting inside. This raises important questions about how we can live in healthier ways: both mentally and physically. The issue of energy, and how we are powering our buildings with increased indoor activity is definitely also part of this important conversation.” London Festival of Architecture returns, directed by Tamsie Thomson (as quoted above). The programme comes in digital format, from 1 to 30 June, asking pertinent questions about the worlds of domestic, industrial and commercial design. The theme for 2020 is Power, encouraging wider dialogues about the radically changing landscape. Thomson expands: “There is a lot of scope to explore political power and how this has shaped our architectural landscape, not just in terms of a physical built environment, but also on a social level. There’s a balance of power in terms of stakeholders and the growing collective of people taking back public space.” Whilst the physical festival has been pushed back to later in the year (dates to be confirmed), there’s an expansive online programme of screenings, exhibitions, competitions and talks, including the first ever virtual tour of the recently

Aesthetica 15

Graciela Iturbide, Mujer Ángel (Angel Woman), Sonoran Desert, 1979; Gelatin silver print, 13 x 18 ⅜ in. Collection of Elizabeth and Michael Marcus; © Graciela Iturbide; Courtesy Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

news

Pioneering Women Artists NMWA AT HOME “We need connection and community now more than ever,” says Susan Fisher Sterling, Director of National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington D.C. NMWA @ Home is part of a quickly developing digital art revolution, launching an online portal that explores the work of pioneering women artists and advocates for more inclusive representation. The virtual resources include an extended online exhibition of Graciela Iturbide (b. 1942), who is widely considered as one of the greatest contemporary photographers in Latin America. Her black and white images capture elements of daily life in Mexico – crafting a rich tapestry of culture, tradition and modernity. “Photography for me is a ritual,” she notes. “To go out with the camera, to observe, to photograph the most mythological aspects of people, then to go into the darkness, to develop, to select the most symbolic images.” The collection highlights pictures of indigenous peoples, including the matriarchal society of the Zapotec people of Juchitán and The Seri in the Sonoran Desert. Human relationships are key to the presentation, with fiestas and ceremonies taking centre stage. Birds and plants are recurring motifs as “symbols of solitude, freedom and independence.” In 2005, Iturbide was commissioned to photograph Frida Kahlo’s belongings – the results of which can also be seen online. Visitors can further explore the painter’s life in Mamacita Linda: Letters between Frida Kahlo and her Mother

16 Aesthetica

– a poignant display that reveals the human being behind “Each of NMWA's the icon. From the archive, Organic Matters: Women to Watch digital shows, talks (originally launched in 2015) foregrounds contemporary and resources focuses practitioners that engage with the natural world. Similarly, on the connections No Man’s Land is a collection of irreverent and provocative between people, places works focusing on the female body. Delita Martin: Calling and the environment. Down the Spirits is the latest show to go live. Featuring audio The institution makes commentary, it delves into Martin’s (b. 1972) engagement a powerful and timely with time and family – linking past and present generations. statement about NMWA’s website is full of other sources of inspiration. Fresh standing together.” Talk is a series of conversations with thinkers and innovators, expanding on topics such as Art, Power and the Vote – 100 Years After Suffrage; and Women in the Creative Economy. There are interviews with the likes of Carrie Mae Weems and Judy Chicago, answering questions such as: “Can an artist inspire social change?” Works by Weems and Chicago are also part of an expansive online collection, which is searchable and free-to-access. Images are available through Google Arts & Culture, with additional profiles offering key information about photographer Berenice Abbott, sculptor Louise Nevelson and artist filmmaker Shirin Neshat. Each of NMWA’s shows, talks and resources highlights the NMWA Online, importance of connections between people, places and the Ongoing environment. The institution makes a powerful and timely statement about standing together; there's plenty on offer. nmwa.org

A Sideways View of Conflict ON CONTESTED TERRAIN audiences the opportunity to consider the impact of conflict “Lê photographs and how it continues to shape cultural narratives. This is a landscapes because theme that transcends time and is more relevant than ever.” of their timelessness Featured series include Small Wars, which was shot over Whilst individuals and the course of three years from 1999-2002. Lê documented even entire societies the layered cultural practice of military re-enactment, may come and go, participating in Vietnam War stagings in Virginia and North the land remains a Carolina. Also included are pieces from the 29 Palms series, constant. In this way, for which Lê documented marines training at a military base the pictures measure in Twentynine Palms, California, prior to deployment for time on both human the Iraq War in 2003. Additionally, the Events Ashore series and geological scales.” highlights the artist’s travels aboard Navy vessels over the course of eight years, detailing US military efforts across the world. Sleeping soldiers, grenade explosions, mechanised assaults and landing zones feature heavily. It’s unsurprising that the images also depict bold, sweeping geographies; seascapes, desert sands and forestry are central to each of the compositions. Leers explains: “Lê photographs landscapes because of their timelessness. Whilst individuals, and even entire societies, may come and go, the land remains a constant. In this way, the pictures measure time on both Carnegie Museum of human and geological scales. These activities have unfolded Art Online, Ongoing on a topography that dates back millennia and has hosted many other historical conflicts.” This survey is perhaps one cmoa.org of the most important to come out this year. vimeo.com/403717590

An-My Lê, Rocket-Propelled Grenade Ambush, 2003-2004, printed 2018. Gelatin silver print. Collection of the Museum of Contemporary Photography at Columbia College Chicago, Gift of Lannan Foundation, Santa Fe.

“My life has been completely affected by American foreign policy. The US were the perpetrators, but they were also the saviours.” An-My Lê (b. 1960) has been widely celebrated for producing photographs that balance a sense of duality and contradiction. She asks questions about accountability, responsibility and intimacy in scenes of conflict. Lê spent her early life in Vietnam before relocating to America, and has, over the last 35 years, produced a huge body of work that examines many nuanced aspects of combat. From training manoeuvres and historic re-enactments, to humanitarian aid efforts, missile testing and protests, Lê’s subject matter looks at all sides of war without clear political or social commentary. Famously, she has stated that she’s “not a war photographer” – finding it “more interesting and much more slippery to work with a side-glance view.” Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, opened the first comprehensive survey of Lê’s political works on 14 March. After gallery closure, the exhibition has, like many others, moved to digital format, including a virtual tour on Vimeo. Beyond attracting visitors to the museum, moving the show online maintains an open dialogue with an exhibition that needs to be seen. Dan Leers, Curator of Photography, notes: “Our focus is on being a responsive museum, which features artists who serve as agents of change and help us understand complex issues with nuance and humanity. Lê’s work offers

Aesthetica 17

Cuadra San Cristóbal in Mexico City by Luis Barragán.

news

An Interactive Schedule DIGITAL DESIGN MUSEUM The Design Museum, London, opened its very first Designs of the Year exhibition in 2007 – in the same year that the iPhone was launched. Since then, 13 years have passed and society has transformed. Social media is everywhere. News feeds provide notifications round-the-clock. Smart devices are in our homes. Cameras are in our pockets. We are always switched on. How often do we take a moment to pause and look back? During this period of distancing, Design Museum launches a digital programme curated to do just that. One of the institution’s online initiatives delves into the archives – capturing snapshots of the world from the 1980s to today. The gallery takes viewers back to where it all began with Art and Industry – a 1982 show which was held at the Boilerhouse Project: Design Museum’s first location within the V&A. It made the case for the serious study of industrial design, and was met with shock when a petrol pump was displayed on a white plinth. Since then, the institution has continued to push boundaries, opening shows such as Commerce and Culture (1989) and Fear and Love (2016) – the latter of which explored ethical questions about the potential of sentient robotics. Digital audiences can browse this history, reflecting on the past 40 years of design. Moving to the present-day, Design Museum hosts a weekly talk with renowned names in the industry. Examples include fashion designer Stella McCartney in conversation with

18 Aesthetica

David Adjaye – an architect renowned for buildings such “News feeds notify as the National Museum of African American History and us round-the-clock. Culture in Washington, D.C. In 2019, Design Museum held a Smart devices are in retrospective of his work, asking the question: how can build- our homes. How often ings, rather than words, be used to tell stories? Additional in- do we take a moment terviews – which can be streamed on Instagram TV – feature to pause and look the notable and sustainable fashion designer Christopher back? During this Raeburn and London based artist Morag Myerscough, whose period of distancing, work is characterised by bright colours and exciting forms. Design Museum Bold tones and exuberant patterns are also defining factors launches a digital in the work of Camille Walala, whose murals and environ- programme curated ments stimulate the senses and inspire joy. She is one of the to do just that.” practitioners taking part in #ArchitectureFriday, an imaginative learning initiative that shares ideas from those at the forefront of contemporary creative practice. Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson – best known for immersive, sensory installations – is also co-founder of Studio Other Spaces. He joins architect Sebastian Behmann in a conversation about the subtle boundaries between art and construction. Meanwhile, Design Museum encourages both adults and children to hone their skills interactively – hosting fashion workshops with McCartney, drawing sessions Design Museum Online with Myerscough and more. As Josephine Chanter, Director Ongoing of Audiences, notes: “Ultimately, during this crisis, we want to find some solace in the optimism of design.” designmuseum.org

Productivity from Home I SHOULD BE DOING SOMETHING ELSE RIGHT NOW

Motorway © Evi Kalogiropoulou.

Somerset House invites audiences to reflect on their com- Purgas (28 July) brings artists together to meditate on the “Somerset House invites monalities and shared experiences through a programme aural influences that have shaped their identities. audiences to reflect on Phones, computers and social media are being used now their commonalities aptly titled I Should Be Doing Something Else Right Now. The London-based centre is recognised as being home to a more than ever – they are what keeps us connected. Somerset through a programme vibrant community of artists. Now, it invites visitors to join House looks further back to 1968, when internet pioneer aptly titled I Should in virtually – to take part in live streams: to read, listen and, Douglas Engelbart demonstrated key elements that would Be Doing Something most importantly, pause. As part of this, creative practitioners shape modern computing. Mother of All Demos, launching Else Right Now. have been sharing their work online as part of Transmissions 6 July, commemorates this moment through talks and Visitors are invited – a weekly commissioned platform taking a DIY TV show films. It is complemented by Defrag, a brand-new podcast to join in virtually, format – as well as responding imaginatively to the title of – launching 21 June – that investigates the role technology to read, listen, plays in the development and consumption of art. and, perhaps more the programme, thinking about indoor productivity. Looking to the future, initiatives such as Upgrade Yourself: importantly, pause.” Over the next few weeks, Somerset House blends a variety of disciplines and formats whilst dipping into the Peer Exchange offers digital sessions for young people aged archives. Examples of this include a re-appraisal of Malick 18-30 looking for routes into the creative industries. Set Sidibé’s (1935-2016) photography – which was the subject against a backdrop of remote working and self-isolation, it of a physical exhibition in late 2016. The show highlighted explores how to build skills in virtual spaces – inspiring the images of modern Mali from the 1960s and 1970s, which are next generation’s resilience and adaptability. Upcoming speakers include Akil Benjamin, of design defined by a sense of youthful energy. Now, inspired by his work, DJ, presenter and African music expert Rita Ray presents studio COMUZI, who presents a workshop on developing The Sounds of Bamako. The talk celebrates the eclectic songs a practice and a variety of revenue streams – transforming played in clubs and parties across Mali’s capital – the very visions into reality. Other speakers include Eloise Hawser, a locations captured in Sidibé’s black and white images. Ray research-based artist interested in the emotional impact of Somerset House Online offers a selection of tracks whilst discussing the stories architectural, mechanical and electrical infrastructures. She Ongoing behind the compositions. The summer arts programme also unearths that which is hidden in the landscape – revealing has music at its core: Imran Perretta’s Listening Party with Paul how urban design shapes collective existence. somersethouse.org.uk

Aesthetica 19

art

10 to See RECOMMENDED VIRTUAL CONTENT

In the last few weeks, a number of institutions, both large and small, have been expanding their strands of digital content, including interviews, podcasts, extended tours and even virtual sculpture gardens. Switch on and connect with 10 galleries from across the globe.

Whitney From Home Whitney Museum of American Art, New York

whitney.org The Whitney has a huge bank of online resources that are accessible to all, including behindthe-scene clips from popular exhibitions and online collections with over 25,000 artworks. Study the works of Georgia O’Keeffe and Judy Chicago through American Sign Language, or listen to podcasts on Sol LeWitt and Ed Ruscha. Each Friday, Whitney also presents a series of artist films on Vimeo. The latest examples include Alex Da Corte’s Rubber Pencil Devil, which comprises 57 short films centred around icons from pop culture.

We Will Walk Turner Contemporary, Margate

turnercontemporary.org Turner Contemporary has planned a virtual tour of We Will Walk – Art and Resistance in the American South. The show reveals the little-known art shaped by the American Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. Sculptures, paintings and installations, produced by more than 20 African American artists from Alabama and the deep south, consider issues of race, class and resistance. Some are in dialogue with the protest era, whilst others evidence the impact of terror and segregation. Civil rights photographer Doris Derby provides soundbites.

Body Architect NGV, Melbourne

ngv.vic.gov.au On 20 June, NGV launches a virtual tour of Lucy McRae: Body Architect, which encourages conversations on the future of human existence through the areas of biology, beauty and health. The online exhibition features seven of McRae’s videos that combine storytelling with speculative science, as well as alluring digital images created in collaboration with Dutch textile artist Bart Hess, which feature balloons, tights, grass and bath foam. The works ask questions about the capabilities of future bodies, such as a potential for colour-excreting skin.

Read, Watch & Listen Barbican, London

barbican.org.uk A mix of podcasts, playlists, films, videos, talks and articles enables audiences to continue to enjoy Barbican's rich and varied output. In-conversations include artist Richard Mosse and writer / academic Anthony Downing on Incoming – a three-channel installation that charts the unfolding migration crisis across the Middle East, North Africa and Europe – discussing a new era of closed borders, halted migration and widespread fear of contagion. All podcasts can be accessed from Barbican’s Read, Watch & Listen website page or via Spotify.

Beside Itself Hauser & Wirth, Menorca

hauserwirth.com Hauser & Wirth has initiated large investments into Virtual Reality. Beside Itself is the latest development in the gallery’s programming as an exhibition model “of the future” – outlining a new venue in Menorca, which will open in 2021. The primary goal is to expand the possibilities of the gallery, creating technology that will help artists to visualise the spaces where exhibitions will be presented, whilst reducing the amount of travel and transportation across the globe. Featuring Louise Bourgeois, Jenny Holzer, Roni Horn and more.

20 Aesthetica

Aesthetica 21

22 Aesthetica

Media Networks

Tate Modern, London

tate.org.uk Tate has an extensive list of online shows and themed displays available in browser-view. From an examination of Living Cities to a spotlight on Materials and Objects, the gallery brings together a wealth of stimulating artworks from the last 500 years. Media Networks, a collection from Tate Modern, raises contemporary questions around feminism, consumerism and the cult of celebrity. Each of the names in the 13 “rooms” respond to the impact of mass-media and new technologies, including Guerrilla Girls, Barbara Kruger, Cildo Meireles and more.

The Broad From Home The Broad, Los Angeles

thebroad.org #TheBroadFromHome's Infinite Drone series presents an immersive environment of light and sound in the spirit of Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirrored Room – The Souls of Millions of Light Years Away. Move into Kusama’s expansive spiritualism, paired with electronic, ambient and pop music. There’s also a new video series, titled Interplay, available via YouTube, which connects contemporary poets to artists from the Broad collection, such as Cy Twombly and John Baldessari. The pieces demonstrate the bond between visual art and literature.

Reimagining Victory IWM, London

iwm.org.uk Reimagining Victory is a new online series, available from 30 June, which explores the state of war and peace in relation to 21st century conflicts. With 2020 marking the 75th anniversaries of VE Day and VJ Day, this playlist includes artists, politicians, peacebuilders and academics who question the concept of victory and what it really means to “win” a war today. The episodes examine the impact of Covid-19 on conflict zones and the creative ways that societies pull together to create harmony. The series is accompanied by an interactive gallery of games.

Uniform Fondazione MAST, Bologna

mast.org The concept of work has been thrown into complete disarray in the pandemic, with few industries managing to continue, and all forced to change structures, planning and physical output. Urs Stahel, former Curator and Director of Fotomuseum Winterthur, has curated over 600 images dedicated to the depiction of work uniforms, from construction and health to education and transport. Images from 44 photographers consider the role that uniforms play within society – distinguishing class, background, experience or level of service.

Sculpture Garden

MoMA, New York

moma.org Since opening in 1939, the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Sculpture Garden has been one of New York’s most prolific green spaces. It was conceived as an outdoor gallery for changing installations that would bring nature, architecture and art together in a new way. In 1953, the garden was redesigned by Philip Johnson, the first director of the architecture department, who imagined the space as a “roofless room” with four distinct, marble-paved areas. Visit the garden online as, across the globe, we “museum from home.” A true digital oasis. 1. Sam Contis, Blue Thumb, 2015, printed 2017. Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; purchase with funds from the Henry Nias Foundation 2018.65. © Sam Contis. 2. Dr. Doris A. Derby, L.C. Dorsey, Civil Rights worker from Shelby, North Bolivar County Farm Vegetable Cooperative, Mississippi. Modern silver Gelatin print from negative,1968. © Doris A. Derby. 3. Installation view of Lucy McRae’s Body Talk, album cover image, 2010, on display as part of Lucy McRae: Body Architect at The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia from 30 August 2019 – 9 February 2020. © Lucy McRae Photo: Tom Ross 4.Incoming, Installation View. Richard Mosse in collaboration with Trevor Tweeten and Ben Frost, the Curve, Barbican Centre, 15 Feb - 23 Apr 2017. Photo by Tristan Fewings / Getty images. 5.ArtLab, Hauser & Wirth Menorca exterior view created in HWVR. Courtesy Hauser & Wirth. 6. Cildo Meireles, Babel (2001). Tate © Cildo Meireles. 7. Infinity Mirrored Room – The Souls of Millions of Light Years Away, 2013, wood, metal, glass mirrors, plastic, acrylic panel, rubber, LED lighting system, acrylic balls,and water. The Broad collection. 8.© IWM Ground staff at an RAF bomber station in Britain celebrate VE Day, 8 May 1945. 9. Weronika Gęsicka, Untitled, from the series Traces.© Weronika Gęsicka. 10. Left, Museum Tower, 1982, architect, Cesar Pelli & Associates; center, The David and Peggy Rockefeller Building, 2004, architect, Yoshio Taniguchi; foreground, The Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Sculpture Garden, designed 1953, architect, Philip Johnson. Photo © 2005 Timothy Hursley.

Aesthetica 23

art

Design as Resolution Lina Bo Bardi HOW CAN ARCHITECTURE CREATE A MORE INCLUSIVE AND CONNECTED WORLD? BO BARDI'S STRUCTURES OFFER LESSONS ABOUT HOW TO REBUILD AND REPURPOSE.

In 1951, Lina Bo Bardi (1914-1992) built the Casa de Vidro, or Glass House, in the hills of what is now São Paulo’s wealthy Morumbi neighbourhood. Perched in the remnants of the Atlantic Forest, its long glass walls are not only surrounded by greenery, but actually wrapped around an interior courtyard of trees that Bo Bardi planted. Nature rises through the heart of the house, growing upwards through the centre of the structure, embracing pillars and staircases. In Brazil today, deforestation of the Amazon has been legitimised by President Jair Bolsonaro. On a wider scale, the decimation of natural habitats and the destruction of biodiversity is, as researchers believe, creating conditions for new viruses to pass onto humans. At a time when the future of cities is uncertain – when doors are locked to the outside world – the legacy of Lina Bo Bardi (Née Achillina Bo), raises important questions about how architecture needs to change. Against a backdrop of the climate crisis and a global pandemic, how can we plan to live with the organic world in a more inclusive way? How should we live with each other? A touring retrospective celebrating Bo Bardi’s career, titled Habitat, was planned before the Coronavirus outbreak, due to open at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, on 13 June. “The idea for her was not to provide solutions but to encourage people to ask questions and to see difficult situations,” says Julieta González, curator of the show. “I think that we could all benefit from such an approach in the face of the crisis that we are living through today.” Bo Bardi’s legacy goes beyond design, spanning cultural theory, museology, pedagogy, anthropology and theatre.

24 Aesthetica

However, the many strands of her practice are united by the fundamentals of community, survival and shelter. González notes: “Lina was an advocate of sustainability – of paying attention to local resources, both material and human. Her problem-solving approach empowered individuals and provided the tools for dealing with material hardship by making do with whatever means were available.” This way of thinking was shaped by Bo Bardi’s direct experiences with war. In 1939, she left the Rome College of Architecture and moved straight to Milan. There, she worked as an architect, illustrator and editor at a time when, in her words, “nothing was built, only destroyed.” In 1943, the offices she shared with designer Carlo Pagani were blown to bits by an aerial bombardment. She would continue to see many more ruins in the years to come, not least in 1945, when she toured the south of Italy with Pagani and the photographer Federico Patellani, whilst documenting the devastation that they encountered along the way. What can be built from ruin? How do we take devastation and decay and turn it into something meaningful, hopeful and helpful? Bo Bardi took these important questions to Brazil in 1946, a matter of months after she married the critic and curator Pietro Maria Bardi. She soon moved to São Paulo when her husband was invited to establish a museum of art in the city. In Brazil, Bo Bardi found a new starting point for architecture – one born from the memory of shelled-out buildings and makeshift refuges that she had witnessed in Europe. She reflected on structures in which the lines between inside and outside were tested and broken.

Aesthetica 25

26 Aesthetica

“The Casa de Vidro was her first major architectural project, drinking from the well of Italian and American modernism. The house comes from a pre- or postapocalyptic vision – a treehouse habitat where the walls are nearly transparent.”

Previous Page: Lina Bo Bardi on the staircase of the Glass House, 1952 © 2020 Museu de Arte de São Paulo, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Museo Jumex, and Prestel Verlag, Munich • London • New York. Left: Exterior view of the Glass House, 1951 (Photo: Henrique Luz) © 2020 Museu de Arte de São Paulo, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Museo Jumex, and Prestel Verlag, Munich • London • New York.

The Casa de Vidro was Bo Bardi's first major architectural project, drinking from the well of Italian and American modernism that was prevalent at the time, but there are hints of something else at work. The house comes from a pre- or post-apocalyptic vision – a treehouse habitat where the walls are nearly transparent between the inhabitants and their surroundings: between civilisation and wild forests. “When designing her house, she wasn't just looking at the humans that would occupy the space,” says the architecture historian and theorist Beatriz Colomina, who, as part of the Habitat exhibition, co-authored an essay on Bo Bardi alongside the architect and theorist Mark Wigley. “She was taking account of all these other species. Plants, of course, are hugely important. This notion of paying attention to the non-human in architecture makes her totally contemporary.” Wigley adds that this approach is political: it flattens a hierarchy, subverting a perceived order between “us” and “them.” He continues: “Bo Bardi crafts a philosophical position of another hospitality, in which you don’t privilege the human over the non-human, which then creates all sorts of transgressions of typical behaviour about gender and about technology.” It is this way of thinking that sets the Casa de Vidro apart from other modernist glass houses. If the likes of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House or Charles and Ray Eames’ house are open to natural light but keep plants, insects and the elements at arm’s length, Bo Bardi’s Casa de Vidro contends with letting them in. These are vital considerations for architects today, and not ones with easy answers. Conceptually, it’s all well and good to open the doors to your surroundings, but how do you protect yourself from what comes in? “The ethics of

the non-human does take us directly into the Coronavirus,” says Wigley. “The concept of trans-species hospitality in her work is also about contagion. It is a philosophy of risk. So, immediately there is this question that we're all asking as we withdraw into our bunkers and homes: what would Lina do?” Perhaps one way forward is not to limit the answers to the walls of our houses. Instead of asking how to best design our shelters, we should ask how to rebuild and repurpose the fabric of our cities, to safeguard communities whilst forging new public spaces out of pre-existing structures. For Bo Bardi, these ideas were developed in the re-design of the Museu de arte de São Paulo (MASP). Built between 1957 and 1968, the iconic museum on Avenida Paulista is a vast glass and concrete box, suspended by four monumental pillars. The outdoor ground is minimal, with the exact same dimensions as the museum that hangs above it. Inside, the removal of barriers is even more evident. Bo Bardi hung the collection in glass panes; the public can see the interiors from the street. Within it, they can see the backside of the masterpieces. It is a porous institution fundamentally – an enormous vitrine that makes art visible in thrilling ways. This anti-elitism would only grow in Bo Bardi’s career. The story goes that the architect’s interest in the northeast of Brazil, and its black African cultural heritage, signalled a crucial turn in her portfolio. There are those that dispute the extent of this shift. Beatriz Colomina and Mark Wigley, for example, claim that Bo Bardi’s outlook has ultimately been influenced by her earlier experiences with war. (“We say that everything you can see of Bo in Brazil you can already see in Italy” Wigley explains.) All the same, Bo Bardi moved to Bahia’s capital, Salvador, in 1959. There she went to work

Aesthetica 27

Lina Bo Bardi, Oceanfront Museum: photomontage of the model and beach site, 1951. Impression on photographic paper, (Photo: Henrique Luz )18 x 20.5 cm. Collection of theInstituto Bardi/Casa de Vidro, São Paulo © 2020 Museu de Arte de São Paulo, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Museo Jumex, and Prestel Verlag, Munich • London • New York.

transforming a 17th century sugar mill into the city’s main cultural centre: Solar do Unhão. Designed with a central focus on pedagogy, it became a home for the city’s museum of modern art as well as the Museo de Arte Popular, which was full of objects made from tin, cardboard, wood and string. “By the time she moved to Bahia, Lina was no longer thinking in terms of European modernism and this was reflected in her work, not only in her conception of the Museo de Arte Popular in Salvador as an arts and crafts school, but also in her own design practice,” expands Julieta González. These threads, of education, destruction, public space and renovation came together most powerfully in 1982 – towards the end of the military dictatorship in Brazil – with the opening of the Centro de Lazer Fábrica da Pompéia (Pompéia Factory Leisure Centre) in São Paulo. Now known as SESC Pompéia, this colossal community centre is built from the remnants of a steel drum factory, which was stripped and sandblasted to expose the reinforced concrete beneath. In a move about as far from a glass house as you can get, the SESC Pompéia complex has gaping holes instead of windows, rendered deep red with sliding grills. It is hard not to see echoes of the destruction of war in its brutal openings, but even with these bold and alarmingly coloured elements, the building manages to be playful: a place of life rather than death. “There are many lessons to be learnt from that project, not only as a building but as an idea for a radical museum, a school, a leisure centre and a place for conviviality,” González notes. “The fact that it is so alive today, constantly in use and not just an iconic building of the 20th century, attests to the power of her vision.” SESC Pompéia is a machine for community. Whilst it is

28 Aesthetica

temporarily closed during the lockdown, it is a testament to how the ruins of an old world can be repurposed for the new, bringing people together in a myriad of ways. The same can be said of Bo Bardi’s Teatro Oficina (1980-1991), a narrow, street-like theatre space for the company of the same name, built from the burnt-out shell of an earlier theatre. Made out of painted scaffolding and simple wooden seats, its initial design came from the director Zé Celso, who experienced a vivid acid trip in which he hallucinated he was being trapped against a wall, on the run from the police. The Teatro Oficina is a theatre stripped bare. In an echo of the Casa de Vidro, the seats overlooking the stage also take in a bed of lush plants and a wall of glass windows. It is yet another project of Bo Bardi's in which nature is not only allowed, but truly welcomed, inside, acting as a kind of healing antidote and a source of peaceful reflection. “No one can save themselves by design,” Bo Bardi famously wrote in 1990. “Can a beautiful glass save us from thirst? Can a very beautiful dish or a beautiful plate save us from hunger, misery, illness and unemployment?” She recognised that design alone cannot deliver complete salvation, and as we stare into the coming months and years, it is worth remembering that the true task of architecture will be to reimagine political and social structures positively. Bo Bardi’s philosophy of flattened hierarchies, communality for humans and the organic world, rings true at a time when so much about how we live has been thrown into turmoil. Perhaps the most valuable lesson for architects, and indeed the wider world, is to work with whatever means are available: not to see difficult situations as storms to weather, but as problems that are ready and waiting to be solved.

Right: Lina Bo Bardi at the Glass House, 1952 © Niemeyer, Oscar / AUTVIS, Brasil, 2019. © 2020 Museu de Arte de São Paulo, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Museo Jumex, and Prestel Verlag, Munich • London • New York.

Words Thomas McMullan

Habitat is available from Prestel prestel.com mcachicago.org fundacionjumex.org masp.org.br

Aesthetica 29

art

A Visual Playground Anna Devís & Daniel Rueda

Architecture has radically changed the landscape of tourism, from the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao to the CCTV Headquarters in Beijing. Contemporary design draws people from across the globe to marvel at structures that scrape the sky and bend over bodies of water. Similarly, photographers have long been drawn to buildings – perfectly framing sharp angles, fluid forms and reflective façades. Anna Devís and Daniel Rueda (both b. 1990) met at the Universitat Politècnica de València in the School of Architecture. Now working as a collaborative duo, they tell stories that redefine the conventions of structural photography, with a delicate aesthetic inspired by the city. The images are magnetic and playful yet minimal, digging into humanity’s fascination, apprehension and appreciation of growing urban environments. Devís and Rueda build on spatial awareness as a form of performance. annandaniel.com | instagram.com@drcuerda | instagram.com/@anniset.

Anna Devís and Daniel Rueda Keep Palm, Miami, USA 2018.

30 Aesthetica

Aesthetica 31

Anna DevĂs and Daniel Rueda Stick to the Plan, Berlin, Germany 2018.

32 Aesthetica

Anna DevĂs and Daniel Rueda Two-gether, Los Angeles, USA 2018.

Aesthetica 33

Anna DevĂs and Daniel Rueda from the Pink a Boo! series, Alicante, Spain, 2019.

34 Aesthetica

Anna DevĂs and Daniel Rueda Umbr-ella, Valencia, Spain 2017.

Aesthetica 35

Anna DevĂs and Daniel Rueda Piece-ful, Doha, Qatar, 2019.

36 Aesthetica

Anna DevĂs and Daniel Rueda Ballon-atic, Berlin, Germany 2018.

Aesthetica 37

Anna DevĂs and Daniel Rueda C-lean, Copenhagen, Denmark, 2017.

38 Aesthetica

Anna DevĂs and Daniel Rueda Teamwork, Doha, Qatar, 2019.

Aesthetica 39

Anna DevĂs and Daniel Rueda Step-tacular, Paris, France, 2017.

40 Aesthetica

Anna DevĂs and Daniel Rueda Grey-teful, Doha, Qatar, 2019.

Aesthetica 41

art

Towards the Horizon Six N. Five

The term “supermodernity” was coined by French anthropologist Marc Augé in 1992, categorised by factual, material and spatial abundance, as well as an excess of selfreflexiveness. In the digital age, this term has become further augmented. We live in world where information is constant. A cloud of experiences, memories and knowledge exists, literally and figuratively, all around us. In isolation, this is further amplified. We move between screens and looking out the window, fantasising about the limitlessness of the outside world. Six N. Five is a contemporary design studio – directed by Ezequiel Pini (b. 1985) – that specialises in still life visuals and videos. The studio builds on the idea of “non-spaces” that captivate our attention, providing a visual oasis that is neither real or artificial; inside or outside. Chairs are empty, pointed towards a blanket of clouds. Beds resist gravity, sitting on top of lakes. Moons rest heavy in the sky. sixnfive.com.

Six N. Five, Sweet Dreams. Created for ICON Magazine IT. Courtesy of Six N. Five.

42 Aesthetica

Aesthetica 43

44 Aesthetica

Six N. Five, Escape.

Aesthetica 45

46 Aesthetica

Six N. Five, Late Nap.

Aesthetica 47

48 Aesthetica

Six N. Five, Sweet Dreams. Created for ICON Magazine IT.

Aesthetica 49

50 Aesthetica

Six N. Five, My Weekend.

Aesthetica 51

art

Powerful Narratives World Photography Organisation THE TOOLS THAT ARE USED TO MAKE GREAT WORKS OF ART ARE SIMILAR TO THOSE THAT RECORD HISTORY. WE CONSIDER THE COMPONENTS OF VISUAL STORYTELLING.

Susan Sontag (1933-2004) once remarked that “to collect photographs is to collect the world.” Each year, the Sony World Photography Awards, headed by the World Photography Organisation (WPO), celebrates images that meaningfully connect with audiences. The 2020 shortlist invites viewers to experience the breadth of the human condition through technical and conceptual innovation. Yevhen Samuchenko’s otherworldly salt lakes in the Kherson region of Ukraine document microscopic algae that turns the water pink. Maximilian Mann’s Fading Flamingos series depicts an environmental disaster in Lake Urmia, Iran, where the body of water has shrunk by over 80%. Hashem Shakeri’s Cast Out of Heaven project draws attention to the current US sanctions against Iran and the subsequent fall in the value of the Rial currency, causing many Tehraners to leave the capital and move to satellite towns. Scott Gray, Founder and CEO at WPO, discusses the ethos behind the competition, and how photography, as an art form, can invite audiences to further reflect upon the world in which we live. A: Many of your winners’ galleries are available to view online. In lockdown, the use of digital resources has grown exponentially; the demand is now for consumer time. Why should viewers log in to see these? SG: Art is part of the wider fabric of society. It is a powerful means of communication. Sadly, we weren’t able to stage this year’s awards ceremony and exhibition, but we still have a duty to our community of photographers to share their stories and introduce their work to new audiences. For

52 Aesthetica

viewers, we provide a moment of relief. With this in mind, we have launched a series of initiatives via our Stay Connected and On Screen pages, which includes an in-depth look at this year’s shortlisted and finalist projects, as well as free portfolio reviews, talks and online resources. We wish we could do more, and this is only a small gesture compared to the heroic work of frontline services and volunteers, but it’s our way of playing a part in these extraordinary times. A: What role does WPO play within photography's wider critical discourse and developing techniques? SG: WPO’s main ethos is to raise the level of conversation around photography and promote its appreciation. It’s a competitive and difficult landscape to navigate. Ultimately, the Sony World Photography Awards were created 13 years ago as a mechanism through which artists can get noticed by our industry-leading panel of jury, their peers, our viewers and the media. This form of validation adds value to their work, and often leads to further opportunities from publishers and gallerists. It has been a great privilege to see it grow to its current record-breaking edition of over 340,000 entries from 203 territories across the world. I believe the competition's success is mainly down to integrity – it is free for anyone to enter and judging is completely anonymous. We acknowledge fine art and portraiture works alongside accomplished documentary and landscape photography, presenting a broad overview of approaches and techniques. We judge the image without knowing how the picture has been shot. Smartphone images are evaluated in the same capac-

Aesthetica 53

54 Aesthetica

Maximilian Mann, Fading Flamingos. Tourists from Tabriz spend their weekends at the lake.

“Photography helps illustrate and define what, at times, are either abstract or far removed subjects. There's a growing sense of consciousness on humanity's impact on the planet. We can help to make sense of the real consequences.”

Previous Page: Yevhen Samuchenko, At the Pink Planet. Lemurian Salt Lake, Ukraine. From the series At the Pink Planet. Left: Hashem Shakeri, Cast Out of Heaven.

ity as, say, those taken with a DSLR camera. This is crucial because we are recording how photography is changing – embracing its accessibility whilst recognising successful images devoid of how they are shot or developed. A: How has WPO helped to develop new talent? SG: The Awards comprise four strands: Youth, Student, Open and Professional. Photography, as a practice, is wonderfully accessible – welcoming people of all ages and from all walks of life – so these strands were created with inclusivity in mind. It was important for us to establish these individual platforms so that different kinds of work can be judged and appreciated. The ideal scenario would be to have someone go through a developmental journey with the organisation. A great example of this would be Sam Delaware, our Youth Photographer of the Year 2016, who has since been shortlisted in 2019’s Student Competition and is also featured in this year’s Awards as a Sony Student Grant recipient. A: Each level has a range of categories – including Architecture, Culture, Creative and Portraiture. This year, WPO added Environment to the list. Why is this important now, and what are you looking to achieve with it? SG: We constantly review our categories to ensure that we stay relevant, whilst responding to the kind of work that is being produced across the globe. Narratives around the environment and the climate crisis are increasingly prominent in these awards, often gaining the spotlight across different strands. By introducing Environment as a brand new category, we were acknowledging these projects’ subjects as essential whilst giving them their own space in the competition.

A: How does WPO incentivise new work that might bring larger attention to the climate emergency. How can photography change the way that nature is perceived? SG: Awards help draw attention to standout work, which, in turn, raises social awareness around key issues. A great example of this is Kieran Dodd’s Hierotopia series which came third in the Landscape category in last year’s competition. The series highlights Ethiopia’s deforestation crisis and, on the back of its media coverage, was noticed by an official from the Embassy of Ethiopia in London who came to visit the exhibition and meet with the photographer. A: Many works document the environment, spanning expansive landscapes – both urban and natural. What do these images teach us about the breadth and complexity of our relationship with the planet? SG: Photography helps illustrate and define what, at times, are either abstract or far removed subjects. There’s a growing sense of consciousness surrounding humanity’s impact on the planet. Through the power of images, we can help to make sense of the real consequences. This is perhaps best exemplified in Edward Burtysnky’s photographs of the oil industry or Daniel Beltrá’s sweeping landscapes of degradation and trauma, presenting a contemporary take on the idea of the sublime in the shadows of human devastation. A: There is often a thin line between defining documentary as reportage or fine art – shooting events as they happen on smartphones. With the images that are included in the awards, how are these distinguishable? SG: We always look for a different approach to storytelling.

Aesthetica 55

Yevhen Samuchenko, White Spot & Black Shadow. Lemurian Salt Lake, Ukraine. From the series At the Pink Planet.

Federico Borella, our 2019 Photographer of the Year, is a very good example. His winning project, Five Degrees, focuses on male suicide in the farming community of Tamil Nadu, southern India, which is facing its worst drought in 140 years. Approaching subjects with great sensitivity, Borella uses beautifully composed still-lifes and portraits alongside documentary shots. The images invite viewers to linger and carefully examine the details. I believe this type of carefully considered work encourages quiet contemplation. These pictures deliver the message more effectively, provoking an emotional response and staying in the minds of viewers. A: How do WPO’s initiatives support and propel artists’ careers? Can you list some success stories? SG: We’ve had some remarkable projects over the years, including Maroesjka Lavigne, who won our 2016 Landscape category for the series Land of Nothingness, depicting the Namibian desert – one of the least densely populated places on Earth – in a subtle palette of pastels. Following her win, she was picked up by Robert Mann Gallery, New York, who published a book of her work. Tania Franco Klein, who uses staged images to explore contemporary issues, first won the National Award for Mexico in 2017 and was then shortlisted in the Creative category in 2018. She has since exhibited in galleries and art fairs all over the world. Alys Tomlinson – our 2018 Photographer of the Year – is now represented by HackelBury Fine Art, London, and a book of her winning series Ex-Voto, was published by GOST in 2019. The work encompasses formal portraiture, large format landscape and detailed still-life images of the “ex-votos”: offerings of religious devotion, found at pilgrimage sites across Europe.

56 Aesthetica

A: What are some of the standout works from 2020? SG: There’s much to be proud of in this year’s finalists in the Professional competition. Examples of significant series includes Hashem Shakeri's Cast Out of Heaven – a beautifully shot project that looks at the lives of those forced to move out of Tehran and resettle in inadequate housing projects. The Future of Farming, by Luca Locatelli, is another expertly shot body of work that documents high-tech agrofarming systems which are being built to accommodate an estimated 10 billion people in 2050. Meanwhile, Chang Kyun Kim's New Home sheds light on the little discussed story of the Japanese Internment Camps in the USA, in which thousands of citizens and residents of Japanese descent were imprisoned during WWII. Project 596, by Florian Ruiz, imaginatively presents landscapes of Lop Nor – a former salt lake in China previously used as a nuclear weapons test site. Finally, Disassembled Memory by Fangbin Chen is an emotive and nostalgic project in which the photographer depicts – in catalogue-like structures – the disassembled parts of his childhood bicycle, in order to preserve memories. A: What’s the best piece of advice or inspiration that you can offer to photographers working today? SG: Edit, edit, edit! Carefully consider the images that you choose to help tell your story, and always keep your audience in mind whilst doing this. Also, try and get your name and work out there as much as possible. Awards are a great way of gaining instant recognition and visibility. However, self-publishing, grant and residency applications, independent fairs, exhibitions and a strong digital profile are also important aspects of building your brand.

Right: Maximilian Mann, Fading Flamingos.

Words Kate Simpson

worldphoto.org

Aesthetica 57

art

Colour and Motif Diane Villadsen

In 2015, Apple released a Rose Gold iPhone. In 2016, Pantone named Rose Quartz its colour of the year. Since then, Marc Jacobs, Gucci and Balenciaga have brought out collections with desaturated tones. Millennial pink has become a global design trend, taking over Tumblr pages and Instagram accounts with pastel layouts and contemporary branding. Diane Villadsenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s photographs are a visual sensation that explore this idea, feeding our appetite for candy coloured compositions and geometric styling. Dreamlike tones move from blush pink and lemon yellow to baby blue and soft lilac â&#x20AC;&#x201C; soothing palettes found amongst painted walls and cut up fruit. The images focus on colours that are both peaceful and alluring, adhering to principles from the wider visual world. Villadsen is a fashion and portrait photographer based in San Francisco Bay. She has spoken at Adobe Live Stream and Today At Apple. dvilladsenphotography.com.

Model: Tiffany Guo (Stars Management) Styling: Diane Villadsen Hair & Makeup: Vanessa B. Lee Courtesy of Diane Villadsen.

58 Aesthetica

Aesthetica 59

60 Aesthetica

Aesthetica 61

Model: Tiffany O'Neil Forde. Styling: Diane Villadsen. Hair & Makeup: April Foster Courtesy of Diane Villadsen.

62 Aesthetica

Model: Andrea Kapenda. Styling: Diane Villadsen. Hair & Makeup: Sarah Hartgens. Courtesy of Diane Villadsen.

xxxxxxx

Aesthetica 63

xxxxxx

64 Aesthetica

Aesthetica 65

Model: Tiffany Guo (Stars Management). Styling: Diane Villadsen. Hair & Makeup: Vanessa B. Lee. Courtesy of Diane Villadsen.

xxxxxxx

66 Aesthetica

xxxxxx

Model: Miki Hamano. Hair & Makeup: Amy Lawson. Photo & Styling: Diane Villadsen. Courtesy of Diane Villadsen.

xxxxxxx

Aesthetica 67

68 Aesthetica

Aesthetica 69

Model: Tiffany O'Neil Forde. Styling: Diane Villadsen. Hair & Makeup: April Foster Courtesy of Diane Villadsen.

art

A New Conversation Athi-Patra Ruga THROUGH BOLD COSTUME, COLOURS, PAGEANTRY AND PERFORMANCE, RUGA'S WORKS ASK MEANINGFUL QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW TO DECOLONISE THE ART SECTOR.

Athi-Patra Ruga (b. 1984) is a South African visual artist alism and rising group mentalities. Unfortunately, we live in a who addresses the history of colonialism to offer a new, sad state of consciousness, grounded on the principles of “us” humanist vision for the future. Through bold and colourful and “them.” In spite of this, there’s an even stronger fightback compositions, each of Ruga's fantastical images explore from artists, humanists and lovers of individuality, who are sexuality, queer identities, cultural hybridity and post- combatting this false sense of evolution. In an “Imaginarium” colonial landscapes. Performance, photography, video, of sorts, I present the fictional state of Azania – a name that textiles and printmaking come together to present characters, is heavily associated with the hopes and dreams of struggles or “avatars” that parody existing socio-political constructs. from pre-1994 black South Africans. It is a word that offered Ruga has exhibited at Sean Kelly Gallery, Seattle; Louis hope for the future – a geographic location that has been Vuitton Fondation, Paris; YBCA, San Francisco; Tate Modern, written about since 40 AD. I would even call my photographs London; Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao; Somerset House, a utopian exercise – redressing South Africa’s sense of loss London; and most recently with Hayward Gallery for the Kiss from having its cultural identity interrupted by inhuman exMy Genders exhibition (12 June - 8 September 2019). His ercises like colonialism and segregation. Like Zion or Trump’s work also appears in both private and public collections such “Great America,” we tend to hark back to a golden age and as the Smithsonian Museum of African Art, Washington D.C. layer it with imagery – as well as dangerous courses of action – to achieve the desired state of “societal purity.” What is this A: Your images are Fantasia-like, tapping into ritual and idea of America that needs to be great again? Utopias are a concept that need to be defended by their creators – utilising procession. How do they create their own mythology? A-PR: It is through the act of looking. When I compose an the polarised notions of “us” and “them” in order to maintain image, I make a point to draw attention to certain elements power and influence over people. Armies and border conthat create a clash between reality and fantasy. The resulting trol are called in to reinforce these ideas. This rhetoric plays works are a nod to the vernacular and the Occidental: staid out in The Future White Women of Azania series (2010-2017), ways of looking at and making things “beautiful.” I consider which displays an intersectional struggle. I had to carve and a range of ways in which western societies survey art through fight for a kind of safe space. The result is Azania. accepted means of communication, such as academia. A: Your background is in fashion; how has this informed A: How do your images undermine utopias, building the styling and use of material in the images? A-PR: First of all, I attended Belgravia Art College in East progressive worlds that question power structures? A-PR: Globally, we are living through a resurgence of nation- London to study painting and art history. This, coupled with

70 Aesthetica

Aesthetica 71

72 Aesthetica

Athi-Patra Ruga, Umesiyakazi in Waiting (From the Exile series, previously Miss Azania 2015), 2019. Archival Ink-jet Print on Photorag Baryta. 161 x 205 cm. Edition of 10 +2 AP. Photographer: Hayden Phipps. © Athi-Patra Ruga. Courtesy of Athi-Patra Ruga and WHATIFTHEWORLD.

“These images are about procession and pageantry; this comes through in the choreography of heroic poses and sacred compositions. Then, there's also a nod to the traditions of African studio photography.”

Previous Page: Detail, Athi-Patra Ruga, Night of the Long Knives I, 2013. Archival Ink-jet Print on Photorag Baryta. 150 x 190 cm. Edition of 5 + 2 AP. Photographer: Hayden Phipps. © Athi-Patra Ruga. Courtesy of Athi-Patra Ruga and WHATIFTHEWORLD.

Left: Athi-Patra Ruga, The Future White Woman of Azania 1, 2012. Inkjet print on Hahnemühle photo rag. 80 x 120 cm. Edition of 5 + 3 AP. Photographer: Hayden Phipps. © Athi-Patra Ruga. Courtesy of AthiPatra Ruga and WHATIFTHEWORLD.

further studies in Fashion History, gave me a range of disciplines to work with. I now approach textiles – and conversations around clothing – as a means of communication. In South Africa, there are many cultural groups who have elevated costume to be a kind of non-verbal form of communication. This is evident, and perhaps blown out of proportion, in my photographic works. Azania, and all of its avatars’ fates, exist in the realm of costume and decoration; I present large-scale tapestries that reference medieval wall hangings in which function meets with storytelling. A: Why do many of the figures remain faceless? A-PR: I have learnt that removing faces is a way of allowing the audience to project themselves, or rather their identities, onto any of the given avatars. I use a range of materials to achieve this, from hair to balloons. Historically, my queer, black and femme identity has been veiled by society’s lack – or inadequacy – of acceptance. Like many others, I have been rendered as an alien: omitted. From the perspective of performance, the characters are reflective of “alien” beings. The choreography, as well as the stilettos and the hidden face, tells the story of navigating the world with difficulty. A: Each piece is meticulous, with bold sets, props and styling. How do you plan projects from start to finish? A-PR: My series are a result of very focused craftsmanship – which is the cornerstone of my studio. The sets are designed and stitched together in Cape Town. Each of the elements is delivered separately and then we install the sets within a day. I collaborate with those working in film design, allowing for a larger sense of scale that envelops the audience.

A: How do each of the objects help to build up a wider sense of storytelling? What is their relevance, as singular subjects, and as part of a larger collective? A-PR: These images are about procession and pageantry; this comes through in the choreography of heroic poses and sacred compositions. Then there's also a nod to the traditions of African studio photography. We ramp up the decoration and start introducing objects that initiate a sense of conflict and visual tension. Nature becomes staged. Fauna is tamed. These are primitive arrangements of “the negro” posing with “the animal” as a way to explore the idea of “feral” characters. I play with the idea of primitivism and levels of “civilisation.” A: You have described your works as “colourful yet frightening” – containing many textures and layers. How do your images convey meaning through detail? A-PR: The stories I tell are through colour; it allows me to deal with the heaviest of topics, such as death or civil clashes, from the outside world. Colour has the ability to not only pacify the audience, but it allows me to enter into new places. As I’m typing this, I am in isolation. I find that the presence of colour can also highlight where it is lacking – where it is missing. We regard colour only when it enters our eyes and it usually elevates our mood. However, it can also highlight the reality that the world isn’t all that colourful in actuality. A: Many of your works have violent titles. How do you choose these and what do they signify? A-PR: With all the “festivities” that are unfolding in the work, I often think back to the main reason I started to create. I wanted to explore how nationalism is bolstered by

Aesthetica 73

Athi-Patra Ruga ...A Vigil for Mayibuye, 2015. Archival ink-jet print on Photorag Baryta. 150 x 190 cm. Edition of 10 + 2 AP. Photographer: Hayden Phipps. © Athi-Patra Ruga. Courtesy of Athi-Patra Ruga and WHATIFTHEWORLD.

pageantry, for example, by the idea of the Beauty Queen – a notion that plays on the femme body. Figures that walk down ramps, in order to represent a nation, are probably part of a patriarchal construct. Night of the Long Knives signifies a bloody historic event. It qualifies an image that might otherwise be described as “festive.” The title drags us back to reality; it allows viewers to toy with utopias and consider how society might be lacking. Imagine watching an episode of The Real Housewives of Atlanta and then immediately switching channels to a report on gender-based violence. A: What projects have you produced since lockdown? Are you building on any previous ideas? A-PR: I am presenting a saga in two parts at the WHATIFTHEWORLD Gallery in Cape Town (and online) titled Interior Exterior / Dramatis Personae. This trans-media piece includes a series of stained glass windows that deify unexpected characters: those who wouldn’t usually be presented in the grand moral tales of traditional stained glass. This includes avatars that I have been performing as over the last 15 years. In this work, they are being deified for who they are in an Azanian set of moral tales (contradictory utopian nationalistic ideals). My stained glass subjects range from muscle leather-men – inspired by Irma Stern – to François “Féral” Benga: a Senegalese dancer from the early 1900s. He used to do drag performances of his colleagues. The second part of the piece, Dramatis Personae, is introducing my new avatar: Nomalizo Khwezi. The figure is presented in tapestry-form, peeking into her psychology, which is made up of tropes from Xhosa literature, specifically those that are published in the 200-year-old Lovedale

74 Aesthetica

Press, stretching back to the turn of the 20th century. Titles like Ingqumbo yemiNyanya (The Wrath of the Ancestors) and Ithemba liyaphilisa (Hope Heals) are upended as they have had a strong hold on respectability politics in my Xhosa society. This work forms part of a larger trans-media series entitled The Lunar Songbook. Last year, I was accepted into the Locarno Film Academy and attended masterclasses led by John Waters and Bong Joon-ho. This is part of a feature film in development, which I started there.

Right: Detail, Athi-Patra Ruga, Night of the Long Knives II, 2013. Archival Ink-jet Print on Photorag Baryta. 150 x 190 cm. Edition of 5 + 2 AP. Photographer: Hayden Phipps. © Athi-Patra Ruga. Courtesy of Athi-Patra Ruga and WHATIFTHEWORLD.

A: What do you hope viewers take from your images? Is there something you aim towards in each project? A-PR: I hope that audiences have experienced the highest levels of technique and storytelling. This is coupled with the desire that I have allowed them the courage to face scars and wounds using the platform of an objective place. The end goal, for me, is that I dignify the imaginations and identities of communities which are black, femme, queer and alive. A: What role should artists play in 2020? What has been your takeaway from the global lockdown? A-PR: Never has there been a more important time for a new generation of artists. Lockdown has proven that the arts are not some rarefied activity for collectors. The arts aren't esoteric. Film is a magic collaboration. Music carries our souls along. We call for these media to celebrate the health workers who are taking care of lives. So, let this be a time to reflect on the fact that we have entered a new era that will demand that you know your purpose as an artist. Document this time as much as possible, so when we reflect on this crisis, we will think of new opportunities. Strive to be in service.

Words Kate Simpson

instagram.com/athipatra whatiftheworld.com

Aesthetica 75

art

Body as Performance Nana Yaw Oduro

Nana Yaw Oduro (b. 1994) is a conceptual photographer based in Accra, Ghana. Oduro’s images are deeply inspired by poetry and spoken word from the likes of Leonard Cohen and Charles Bukowski, amongst others. Based on a creative process that transforms words into visuals, these images explore boyhood, masculinity and identity. The photographs are a visual manifestation of movement, thought and emotion – expressed through bold colours that juxtapose against black bodies. Bare backs stretch outwards toward the sun; oranges nestle within overlapping arms; knees dip into stretches of open water. Bright yellows, greens, reds and blues draw the viewer into silent narratives. The figures express emotions through subtle positions and gestures: kneeling, hiding or leaning into abstract landscapes. They reveal an “action” of sorts – like the first line of a story. Oduro asks the viewer to fill in the rest. instagram.com/the.vintage.mason.

Nana Yaw Oduro, Joshua. Courtesy of the artist.

76 Aesthetica

Aesthetica 77

Nana Yaw Oduro, Fruits Are For Boys. Courtesy of the artist.

78 Aesthetica

Nana Yaw Oduro, Camel Heart. Courtesy of the artist.

Aesthetica 79

Nana Yaw Oduro, Present Burden. Courtesy of the artist.

80 Aesthetica

Nana Yaw Oduro, The Prayer II. Courtesy of the artist.

Aesthetica 81

Nana Yaw Oduro, Take It Easy, But Take It. Courtesy of the artist.

82 Aesthetica

Nana Yaw Oduro, God Body. Courtesy of the artist.

Aesthetica 83

Nana Yaw Oduro, Untitled. Courtesy of the artist.

84 Aesthetica

Nana Yaw Oduro, Pounding Heart. Courtesy of the artist.

Aesthetica 85

art

Tapping into Nature Makoto Azuma HUMANITY'S INTERACTION WITH NATURE IS BEING REDEFINED. MAKOTO AZUMA HIGHLIGHTS THIS, JUXTAPOSING ANCIENT TRADITION WITH INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES.

On 21 June 2016, Makoto Azuma (b. 1976) set 2000 flowers on fire at the Oya Stone Mine in Tochigi, Japan. Burning Flowers incorporated the incineration of gymea lilies, dahlias, gloriosas, cockscombs, gerberas, heliconias, proteas, roses and more. The piece used mostly red blooms; the colours of the petals intertwined with the reds and oranges of the flames that consumed them. It was one of the artist’s most dramatic projects to date, but it was also typical of his style. Azuma creates fantastical, mind-bending installations that connect to the beauty of the natural world whilst drawing attention to differing levels of manmade intervention. Azuma tests the limits of sculpture and installation. He has sent flower arrangements into space (In Bloom #1: Exobiotanica 1 – Botanical Space Flight, Nevada, 2014) and dropped them to the bottom of the ocean (In Bloom #3: Sephirothic Flower, Suruga Bay, 2017). He has frozen plants in blocks of ice (Iced Flowers, Saitama, 2015) and laid them out by the thousand to wither and die. He has sent flowers drifting out to sea and arranged them in artisan vases (In Bloom #2: DAGAT & BULAKLAK, Negros Island, 2015). His practice is spectacular, unusual – and very particular – so it’s surprising to find out it all started off by accident. Born in Fukuoka Prefecture, Azuma’s first passion was music; in 1997, he moved to Tokyo with the hope of pursuing a career in the industry. Whilst waiting for this to take off, he took a part-time job in a flower shop, and discovered an unknown love of botany. It seemed an unlikely sidestep, but for Azuma, it felt like a natural career move because music and plants – he suggests – have much in common. “Both

86 Aesthetica

are ephemeral, momentary and unique. Just as there are as many kinds of red roses, a piece of music is always different depending on the mental state of the musician and the environment in which they are playing.” By 1999, he was managing a boutique flower shop in Tokyo’s central Azabu-Juban district. In 2002, he opened up his first personal venture: Jardin des Fleurs – a collaboration with the photographer Shiinoki Shunsuketo – which was based first in the upscale Ginza, and now in the fashionable Minami Aoyama district. Azuma thinks of the project in terms of a “laboratory.” In the space, he carefully controls the light, humidity and temperature – as well as the volume of the music inside it – to create the optimal environment. In his ethereal “garden,” he has worked with many high-profile brands such as Dries Van Noten, Hermès and Boucheron. Evidently, this is no ordinary flower shop. Being an artist and being a florist are viewed as “equal” to Azuma, but he adds that work at Jardin des Fleurs involves a triangular balance between “creativity, customer requests and material.” Gradually, he felt compelled to embark on personal creative endeavours, sparking an intimate dialogue with plants. In 2005, he started producing installations that display and manipulate botany in cutting-edge ways. Early series include Shiki, which included suspending Bonsai Trees in stark isolation. In 2007, he created Mominoki Moeru (Burning Fir), in which he set a tree on fire. In 2008, he founded AMPG (Azuma Makoto Private Gallery) in order to further experiment with new ideas – working out of an old print shop in Tokyo. Azuma made and exhibited one work

Aesthetica 87

88 Aesthetica

Azuma Makoto, Sequia y Sombra, in Argentina, 2018. Photograph by Shiinoki Shunsuke/ Courtesy of AMKK

“Azuma says that the technology doesn't matter – the point is always to find new ways to showcase organic beauty and to encourage people to appreciate and therefore respect the natural world.”

Previous Page: Azuma Makoto, Shiki 1 × Landscapes, 2015 Photograph by Shiinoki Shunsuke/ Courtesy of AMKK. Left: Azuma Makoto, In Bloom #4: EXOBIOTANICA II — Botanical Space Flight, in Nevada, 2017. Photograph by Shiinoki Shunsuke/ Courtesy of AMK.

a month at AMPG from April 2007 to March 2009, before disappear without ever being known as their habitat comes launching Azuma Makoto Kaju Kenkyujo. AMPG proved under increasing threat from manmade industries such pivotal, laying the foundations of his practice and fostering as logging and mining. In 2018, he paid tribute to these a spirit of invention. “All my works are experimental. mysterious other lifeforms with an 80kg hanging sculpture, Sometimes I end up using radical methods; sometimes constructed at a former school In São Paulo. Here, Azuma also references much older Japanese they are incredibly common.” For the artist, there are no particular “rules” for successful creative expression, but the traditions, looking back to the ancient art of flowerintention must be exact: to always respect life and spark a arranging, which was popularised in the 16th century but conversation with it directly. “I believe that as long as you dates back to the 7th century. The occupation draws on have that kind of soul, the flower will answer in return.” Buddhist ideas, and even earlier philosophies. The idea of These kinds of conversations have involved using the “listening” to the natural world is part of the Ikebana tradition latest technology such as freezing plants by soaking in which gods or spirits inhabit all things. “I have never been them in liquid nitrogen. Using this approach In Block aware of it directly, but I am born and bred Japanese, so I Flowers (Tokyo, 2016), for example, he isolated stems he believe this way of thinking is deeply ingrained. Japanese had picked or grown and fixed them within a particular people liken trees to gods and venerate [some] as sacred moment in time. He has also built displays with obvious, trees called Goshinboku. They believe that deities exist and even exaggerated, human intervention. In Fighting everywhere, so they approach nature with a feeling of awe Flowers (Shanghai, 2017), Azuma installed plants in a wire and reverence. Without respect for nature, the process of mesh cube measuring 2.5 metres high, evoking concepts of changing life into artwork does not happen. I think that imprisonment by using a material usually implemented to sense of tension adds even more power to my work.” make fences. The installation was overwhelming. Azuma emphasises all stages of life cycles, including At other times, his work is stripped-back and gestural: decay, and shows a keen awareness of the fact that the simply laying flowers down to dry out and decompose, plants will die, adding a further layer of performativity to or handing them out, for free, to passers-by. Azuma says each piece. He instils the concept of “Mono-no aware”: a that technology doesn’t matter – the point is always to find wistful appreciation of life that’s made bittersweet by the new ways to showcase organic beauty and to encourage fact that all beings must eventually pass away. First conpeople to appreciate and therefore respect the natural ceptualised in Japanese literature 1000 years ago, this world. In June 2013, he travelled to Belém, near the mouth concept underlines the tradition of gathering to admire of the Amazon, to find out more about the plants and ephemeral cherry blossoms (lasting only a week). The acflowers there, many of which have yet to be discovered ceptance of transience and death also underpins a slightly and documented. Sadly, some of these unknown flora will grislier Buddhist tradition known as “Kusozu”: paintings of

Aesthetica 89

Azuma Makoto, Botanical Sculpture: Sequía y Sombra (Drought and Shadow), in Argentina, 2018. Photograph by Shiinoki Shunsuke/ Courtesy of AMKK.

Afterall, if people want to look at flowers they only have corpses which depict the process of decomposition. Fragility is central to Azuma; his work is always destined to go outside. And, for as long we can remember, flowers to wither and die in the end. “The life cycle of a flower is so have been used to mark important rites of passage: births, short, which is why the very lifetime of a flower is even more weddings and funerals. It’s an impulse that the artist has precious and heavier than a those of a human being.” He directly explored, with the 2016 installation Burning evokes the precarious situation of the planet, as we hang in Flowers dedicated to his friend and theatre director Yukio the universe, 100 seconds to midnight as registered on the Ninagawa, who died the month before. Ninagawa had also Doomsday Clock. In Bloom #1: Exobiotanica 1 - Botanical asked Azuma to provide the flowers for his hospital room, Space Flight, for example, shows the Earth floating in space and later to take responsibility for tributes at the funeral. In June 2018, Azuma produced Botanical Sculpture: just behind the arrangement. Whilst we're facing Covid-19 Prayer for Fukushima, a sculpture installed in a high school and the climate crisis, this perspective is crucial. Even though these artworks will eventually fade, fall in remembrance of those who lost their lives in the nuclear apart or simply disappear, photographs will document their disaster; his ongoing artworks Flowers for Peace in Hirosingle-use existence – images which remain “durable and shima and Nagasaki involve leaving flowers at memorials fixed,” as Henry Fox Talbot posited in The Pencil of Nature to those who died in the atomic bombing of these cities. back in 1846. Azuma’s works are always shot by the same “Flowers accompany human life. In Japan, we can find fosphotographer – his business partner Shiinoki Shunsuke – sils of flowers in ancient Jomon period tombs [which date who, rather than just documenting the plants and flowers back 10,000 years]. People back then treated plants as in these otherworldly environments, takes shots that emu- something holy – that is not something that can be exlate Azuma’s complex approach. “I always try to capture plained by reason, it’s more like a feeling hidden in us." This is an ancient instinct, but it’s also increasingly necesthe moment of flowers acutely,” explains Shunsuke. “To achieve this, I use various angles, lighting and methods of sary to life in the 21st century. Our daily lives – and the shooting to express beauty and mystery.” media – are dominated by the Covid-19 virus, but in the Azuma’s art can be interpreted not just in terms of background, slower, yet perhaps more lethal, issues conJapanese culture, but also in light of wider human impulses tinue. Mass consumption, deforestation, plastic manufacsuch as the urge to cultivate and harness the wilderness, turing and toxic emissions are still burning through our which is inevitably juxtaposed with the yearning to be out, resources, pushing us closer to global species extinction. appreciating the beauty of forests, oceans and parks. Never Right now, we need art that makes us think about what we has such a point been amplified, with the lockdown forcing value the most. “As times have changed, the needs of flora humans to be inside their homes and allowing – if the and fauna have increased and broadened. And I can forememes are to be believed – nature to flourish and rebloom. see that these needs will become even stronger.”

90 Aesthetica

Right: Azuma Makoto, Shiki 1 × Landscapes, 2015. Photograph by Shiinoki Shunsuke/ Courtesy of AMKK.

Words Diane Smyth

Flower Art is published by Thames & Hudson thamesandhudson.com azumamakoto.com

Aesthetica 91

art

Reality Usurped KangHee Kim

KangHee Kim (b. 1991) distils the everyday, refining and transforming it into something altogether different â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and utterly fantastical. Kim asks viewers to think beyond the possibilities of the lens and see the world in new ways: where up can be down; left can be right; fences can be portals; and motorways can pave the way to the sun. Bold, blazing blues characterise the featured images as skies take centre stage. Billowing white clouds roll into focus and engulf phone wires, cut through wire, peek through walls and dance across the surface of empty bus seats. Each composition is perfectly framed â&#x20AC;&#x201C; creating doorways, borders and hinge points between one space and the next. Kim has worked with the likes of Samsung, The New York Times, The New Yorker, VCSO and ICON Magazine, and has been featured in TIME, Forbes, Ignant, Hunger TV, Aperture, British Journal of Photography, VICE and more. Kim is represented by Benrubi Gallery, New York. kanghee.kim.