It Ain’t Necessarily So
It Ain’t Necessarily So
Ziggy Bond, Christine Jeffs, Kim Lu, Timothy Mackrell, Saynab Muse, Yvonne Shaw, Christopher Young
The Wallace Arts Centre, Pah Homestead
72 Hillsborough Rd, Auckland
7 April - 29 May 2022
Opening Night: Wednesday 4 May, 6-8pm
Part of the Auckland Festival of Photography
The photographic portrait has often been seen as a way of revealing the true identity of the sitter and photographers have been commended for their ability to capture the inner character of the subject. However contemporary photographic portraiture does not strive for this moment of truth. Instead it advances the notion that it is no longer, and maybe never was, attainable.
This exhibition of seven established and emerging Auckland artists presents an ambiguous set of images. These photographic/video works reveal far less than we have come to expect from portraits but at the same time open up possibilities of a different type of understanding. The subjects are impassive, leaving much to the viewer’s imagination. There is no social context and little attempt within the image to involve us in possible stories of the subjects.
What is subtly revealed are private and often contemplative psychological states. Complex, layered narratives lie behind the deadpan surface of these portraits but you have to read further about the works to put the pieces together.
It ain’t necessarily so explores the territory of interiority while also offering us an insight into lives only partially revealed, where categorical social roles are abandoned and the lens is turned to a more obscure and mutable psychological landscape.
Christine Jeffs, Timothy Mackrell, Yvonne Shaw and Christopher Young are represented through The Essence Archive, an art collective of thirteen New Zealand-based artists whose photographic works reflect multiple levels of meaning.
For more information on The Essence Archive, visit:
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