Where am I?, a photo from Ile-de-France, North

Photographer's Note

Rythm number colour #1 (next)

As those who may have already glimpsed some of my previous images here, I hardly devote myself to blazing sunsets, portraits where one would like to make us perceive a full life through a meaningful look, nor imitations of postcards of all kinds...
Instead, in terms of photography as well as many other things, I feel challenged by the human being. By what he is, what he sees, what he dreams of, what he expresses, what he creates, between daily life and art, reality and sublimation, perception of the past and range of prospects to come, discovery and sharing.
To imagine, to structure, to compose, to propose, to show, to make react: questionning space, confronting oneself with time, apprehending limits, going beyond appearances, giving rise to meaning, inviting to go along without anything to impose...
In fact, if I tell you all that, it is obviously because of the image above, but mostly about what caused it: the Aurélie Nemours' Rythm number colour exhibition in the centre Georges Pompidou, which I discovered while it was about to end a few weeks ago.
In fact, I did not know much about Aurélie Nemours before that. Of course, I must have seen some of her work here or there, but without ever linking them up beyond a more or less formal community of artists fascinated by geometric abstraction.
After all, I am but an self-taught person who reacts to instinct, claiming responsibility only for my desire of curiosity.

At first glance, such a succession of paintings and drawings (as here) may seem austere. Even redundant. Except that as you go from one room to the next one, following the proposed chronology and the evolution by the artist, an astonishing sensuality emerges not only from the whole scenography, but from quantity of single pieces of art in particular, between desire of absolute and refusal of all easiness, eye-level hanging and floor reflection (thus inciting you to keep on looking for more photos to come soon), subtlety of harmony and precision of details, rigour and sensitivity...
By integrating the inherent constants and the constraints of space, while proposing to be both a box and an echo of the creation process, seldom the nature itself of an exhibition had appeared me to be as much in symbiosis with why it exists to begin with:
offering to see, to help to understand,
offering to feel, to intice learning,
offering to explore, to entitle to act...

Which, when we consider that all this revolves around a 94 year old lady, is still revealing a most enthralling aspect of humanity, isn't it?

Lens distortion and perspective corrections

Bolivar, cgrindahl, bpelvan, joso has marked this note useful

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cgrindahl (6113) 2004-11-02 2:54

You may be able to fool some people Dominique, but I know you're just a "leg man" enthralled with a young woman you encountered during your visit to the museum... ;-)

Your description of the exhibit applies equally well to this and your many images, since you eschew the conventional in every instance, opting instead for the evocative, challenging perspective. Personally, I enjoy your idiosyncratic approach to photography, much as I enjoy what Torben and Isabel bring to the board. You embellish your photographs with interesting notes as well, which makes the whole experience enjoyable for those of us who enjoy grandiloquence.

I like what you do with this capture. The red purse and gold frames set off the diminished tonal range from black to gray. Details are finely rendered. Very nice all around.

bpelvan (3798) 2004-11-02 3:30

Yes Dominique, you took this pic at the last day of the exhibition.:))) I really would like to be there as I like symmetrical and geometrical art works very very much. And this lady is one of my favorites of abstract geometrical art masters.

You have a perfect composition here again and I see know that I missed it..)))

Black and white colors (especially on the lady visitor), wall, frames and the reflection on the frame looks wonderful.

Very well framed good shot Dominique. Thanks for sharing...

green (1014) 2004-11-02 4:02

J'ai aussi eu l'occasion d'aller voir et d'apprécier l'excellente exposition d'Aurelie Nemours il y a quelque semaines déjà. Malheureusement, les gardiens de l'expo mon sauté dessus dés que j'eus sortis mon appareil photo de son sac; "les photo sont interdites ici monsieur!... rangez votre appareil".
Je n'ai rien trouvé d'austère ni de rébarbative bien au contraire et au fur et mesure que j'avançais de toile en toile une émotion assez forte me gagnait. Une émotion intense que je n'avais ressentis que lorsque j'avais vu pour la toute première fois les toiles (en vrai et non reproduite en photo) de Mark Rothko exposées à la Tate Modern. D'ailleurs Rothko se défendant d'être un peintre abstrait disait peindre des émotions et pensait que si les gens ne pleuraient pas devant ses toiles, mais par contre admirez l'ajustement des couleurs, c'est qu'ils n'avaient rien compris à son travail. Et bien pour moi, le travail d'Aurélies Nemours, c'est la même chose, de l'émotion avant tout.
Maintenant parlons de votre photo, dont la composition est parfaite. Le sujet est en présence de trois toiles. On pourrais ce dire que qu'elle regarde la toile centrale dû au reflet de sa tête sur cette même toile. Je la sens tendu (position du pied droit), cherche t'elle à comprendre alors qu'il ne faudrait peut-être que juste ressentir?
J'aurai peut-être retravailler les niveaux (correction gamma) et accentué le contraste un poil. Je ferai peut-être un workshop.

[workshop] [compare] +

Porteplume (4036) 2004-11-02 16:32 [Comment]

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Ebbe (9625) 2004-11-07 6:35

I like the impersionalized (new word?) feeling of visitors to a place like that this, maybe it is just my prejudice but the black outfit seems the right thing to wear here. Great composition with a black silhouette offside balanced with two black squares. The WS by Romain is fine too but on my screen the correct setting would be somewhere half way.

sayzey (2358) 2004-11-20 18:46

You like writing your descriptions dont you! Its refreshing to see someone who utilises the ability to include a note so much as you do, I hate it when people dont inclde a note and yo uare guessing about what a photo is and what it means!

I wonder if you would have taken this shot the same if the lady had a skirt on? Good perspective, makes it a little bit different and could have been taken by a child or something.

I like how you got the womans reflection in the glass of the artwork.

I have visited the pompidu centre and got a few photos of interesting peices, I will revisit them and post any I think are any good.

Well done, a very original series!

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geraldoar (296) 2005-04-04 21:35

Thank you for posting this fine and thought provoking image.