Arne Svenson
dal 9/9/2005 al 8/10/2005
Segnalato da
9/9/2005
Arne Svenson
Western Project, Culver City
Portraits. The sculptures are constructed with bone, clay, fiberglass, statistical averages and the intuition of the forensic artist, into a likeness of the unidentified subjects. What the artist has photographed are images of the forgotten. The photographs are an homage to the unidentifiable from the mass graves of Juarez, Mexico to hometown USA neighborhoods.
Portraits
Western Project is proud to present a new body of work by New York
photographer, Arne Svenson. The Portraits are large format silver gelatin
prints of forensic facial reconstruction sculptures by Frank Bender of
Philadelphia, PA and Gloria Nusse of Mill Valley, CA. Originally, these
sculptures were commissioned by law enforcement agencies to determine the
identity of victims involved in violent crimes. Svenson has continued the
themes in his work  the reconstruction of identities  this time with a
walloping emotional tone. His pictures spin the definitions of portraiture
and representation. The artist spent three years researching, photographing,
and re-photographing the sculptures to achieve a set of empathetic images.
The sculptures themselves are constructed with bone, clay, fiberglass,
statistical averages and the intuition of the forensic artist, into a
likeness of the unidentified subjects. What Svenson has photographed are
images of the forgotten. The photographs are an homage to the unidentifiable
 from the mass graves of Juarez, Mexico to hometown USA neighborhoods.
These pictures speak of lost members of our families, communities and
culture. They question the nature of violence and aggression in contemporary
society while portraying the willful human spirit. Though seemingly
anonymous, each picture provokes memories; perhaps friends or relatives,
implying a connection, primal or genetic, of the extended human family.
Svenson's body of work includes the books, Prisoners, published in 1997,
Sock Monkeys (200 out of 1,863), published in 2003, and the newly released
Mrs. Ballard¹s Parrots, as well as photos from the Mutter Museum of
Pathology, and Las Vegas, Nevada. He is the recipient of the 2005 James D.
Phelan Art Award in Photography.
Reception: Saturday, September 10th, 5-8pm
Image. Arne Svenson, Portrait #5, 2005, silver gelatin print, 50 x 40 inches,
edition of 5.
Western Project
3830 Main St. - Culver City, CA 90232