John Stezaker's Collages Using Black-And-White Film Photos and Old
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Source: Guardian, The {Review} Edition: Country: UK Date: Saturday 29, January 2011 Page: 16,17 Area: 2166 sq. cm Circulation: ABC 264819 Daily BRAD info: page rate £11,400.00, scc rate £42.00 Phone: 020 3353 2000 Keyword: Whitechapel Gallery Dillon, Brian, John Stezaker: What a carve up, The Guardian, 29 January 2011 John Stezaker’s collages using black-and-white fi lm photos and old postcards are nostalgic but also uncanny and absurd. As a career-spanning exhibition of his work opens at the Whitechapel Gallery, Brian Dillon pays tribute to a sly romantic What a Source: Guardian, The {Review} Edition: Country: UK Date: Saturday 29, January 2011 hPage: 16,17 Area: 2166 sq. cm Circulation: ABC 264819 Daily BRAD info: page rate £11,400.00, scc rate £42.00 Phone: 020 3353 2000 carveKeyword: Whitechapel Gallery up image might be used to make art, he English artist thus obviating the tedium of free- John Stezaker, hand drawing. But when he took the whose uncanny machine to his bedroom, he found collages are all he could squeeze on to a sheet of the subject of a paper was a corner of the picture: career-spanning Big Ben, a few turrets and a stretch exhibition at the of red sky. He tried painting over it in Whitechapel Gal- his best approximation of an “expres- lery, tells a revelatory tale about the sionist-psychedelic” style, but when T he turned off the projector the result origins of his luminous art. Stezaker was born in Worcester in 1949; when was “horrifi c”. he was 13 his family moved to London, In light of the artist’s subsequent and around this time his parents sup- romance with the found photograph, planted their crackling old snapshot this anecdote is almost too apt to be albums with a new slide projector. true. By the time he enrolled at the Slade in the late 60s, his main infl u- The teenager was fascinated by the ences were Gerhard Richter and Sigmar apparatus, and especially by the sin- Polke: painters whose use of photo- gle demonstration slide that came graphs overlapped with and trumped, with it: a wide-angle photograph of in expressive terms, the pop art of a two men overlooking the Thames, few years earlier. But Stezaker was a with the Palace of Westminster and student too at a time when a wholesale a lurid sunset behind them. Stezaker critique of the pop-cultural image was swiftly grasped that the projected being launched by such thinkers as Reproduced by Durrants under licence from the NLA (newspapers), CLA (magazines), FT (Financial Times/ft.com) or other copyright owner. No further copying (including printing of digital cuttings), digital reproduction/forwarding of the cutting is permitted except under licence from the copyright owner. All FT content is copyright The Financial Times Ltd. Article Page 1 of 7 171821600 - JEWTAJ - A19109-1 - 44000524 Reproduced by Durrants under licence from the NLA (newspapers), CLA (magazines), FT (Financial Times/ft.com) or other copyright owner. No further copying (including printing of digital cuttings), digital reproduction/forwarding of the cutting is permitted except under licence from the copyright owner. All FT content is copyright The Financial Times Ltd. Article Page 6 of 7 171821600 - JEWTAJ - A19109-1 - 44000524 Source: Guardian, The {Review} Edition: Country: UK Date: Saturday 29, January 2011 Page: 16,17 Area: 2166 sq. cm Circulation: ABC 264819 Daily BRAD info: page rate £11,400.00, scc rate £42.00 Phone: 020 3353 2000 Keyword: Whitechapel Gallery John Stezaker’s collages using black-and-white fi lm photos and old postcards are nostalgic but also uncanny and absurd. As a career-spanning exhibition of his work Source:opensGuardian, at the WhitechapelThe {Review} Gallery, Brian Dillon pays tribute to a sly romantic Edition: Country: UK Date: Saturday 29, January 2011 Page: 16,17 Area: 2166 sq. cm Circulation: ABC 264819 Daily BRAD info: page rate £11,400.00, scc rate £42.00 Phone: 020 3353 2000 Source: Guardian, The {Review} Keyword: Whitechapel Gallery Edition: Country: UK Date: Saturday 29, January 2011 Page: 16,17 WhatArea: a2166 sq. cm Circulation: ABC 264819 Daily BRAD info: page rate £11,400.00, scc rate £42.00 h Phone: 020 3353 2000 Keyword: Whitechapel Gallery John Stezaker’s collages using black-and-whitecarve fi lm photos and old postcards areup nostalgic but also uncanny and absurd. As a career-spanning exhibition of his work image might be used to make art, to gauge his careful distance from the opens at the Whitechapel Gallery, Brian Dillonhe pays English tribute artist toGuy a sly thusDebord; romanticobviating the Situtationists’ the tedium of scur- free- tradition of photomontage – a term John Stezaker, riloushand repurposing drawing. ofBut media when imagery he took the he avoids, in favour of “collage” . As whose uncanny became machine an exemplary to his bedroom, strategy he for found Stezaker sees it, the great monteurs collages are him,all alongside he could his squeeze abiding, on and to a then sheet of such as John Heartfi eld and George the subject of a unfashionable,paper was a interest corner ofin thesurrealism. picture: Grosz always worked at some r e m o v e career-spanning (He recallsBig Ben, being a few shown turrets Max and Ernst’s a stretch from the image itself – indeed, this exhibition at the Une ofsemaine red sky. de He bonté, tried based painting on the over it in was often the critical or satirical point Whitechapel Gal- illustrationshis best approximation to earlier novels, of by an Wil- “expres- of their work: to conjure radical ideas lery, tells a revelatory tale about the liamsionist-psychedelic” Coldstream on his fi rst style, day but at the when out of pictures that otherwise al- T Slade.)he turnedSchooled off also the onprojector the recently the result origins of his luminous art. Stezaker lured the everyday viewer. With his was born in Worcester in 1949; when translatedwas “horrifi writings c”. of Walter Benjamin, residual romanticism and often frank he was 13 his family moved to London, for whomIn light the conjunctionof the artist’s of subsequent photo- What a graph and caption had altered forever embrace of 20th-century glamour, and around this time his parents sup- romance with the found photograph, Stezaker is perhaps closer to an artist planted their crackling old snapshot howthis we lookedanecdote at images,is almost Stezaker too apt to be such as Hannah Höch, whose Album albums with a new slide projector. begantrue. making By the work time with he enrolled text and at pic- the of 1933 juxtaposes press imagery with h tures,Slade intent in theon exposinglate 60s, histhe main mystique infl u- The teenager was fascinated by the ravishing fashion illustrations and of theences visual. were Gerhard Richter and Sigmar apparatus, and especially by the sin- fragments of a sublime or disturbing ItPolke: was a movepainters that whose was very use ofmuch photo- of gle demonstration slide that came its timegraphs – London-based overlapped with artists and such trumped, as nature. In Stezaker’s collages as in with it: a wide-angle photograph of Victorin Burginexpressive and terms,Susan Hillerthe pop (whose art of a Höch’s, images sidle up to and seduce two men overlooking the Thames, ownfew Tate years Britain earlier. show But opens Stezaker on Tues- was a one another, shying from overarching with the Palace of Westminster and day)student were doing too atparallel a time things when ina wholesale very arguments or narratives. carvea lurid sunset behind them.up Stezaker That’s not to say that there isn’t diff erentcritique registers of the –pop-cultural but for Stezaker image it was swiftly grasped that the projected was beinga dead launched end. He suspectedby such thinkers that his as a degree of knowing distance – and image might be used to make art, territory was the collective fascina- a strain of disturbing violence – in he English artist thus obviating the tedium of free- tion with image itself rather than the Stezaker’s work. It is fi rst of all a his- John Stezaker, hand drawing. But when he took the torical distance. Early on, he began whose uncanny machine to his bedroom, he found conceptual urge to undermine that fas- to work with actors’ portraits (mostly cination. At this point, in the mid- 70s, collages are Reproducedall by he Durrants could under squeeze licence on from to thea sheet NLA (newspapers), of CLA (magazines), FT (Financial Times/ft.com) or otherblack-and-white) copyright owner. No and further fi lm stills from that sliver of sunset from his adoles- the subject of a copying (includingpaper printingwas a cornerof digital ofcuttings), the picture: digital reproduction/forwarding of the cutting is permitted except under licencethe from middle the copyright of the 20th century – im- owner. All FTBig content Ben, isa copyrightfew turrets The Financialand a stretch Times Ltd. cence unexpectedly returned. He had ages he culled from defunct cinemas career-spanning Article Page 1 of 7 since learned that the complete photo- and picture agencies that were then exhibition at the171821600 - JEWTAJof red - A19109-1 sky. He - 44000524 tried painting over it in Whitechapel Gal- his best approximation of an “expres- graph was also a hugely popular post- going out of business. (Stezaker once lery, tells a revelatory tale about the sionist-psychedelic” style, but when card, but it was still the skewed portion bought the entire contents of one such T he turned off the projector the result in the corner that obsessed him. And origins of his luminous art. Stezaker establishment, although the prints are was born in Worcester in 1949; when was “horrifi c”.