Zoe Leonard
Opening: December 3, 2009–7.00 p.m.
'Photographs' is the first major survey of the work of American artist Zoe Leonard. In addition to early works, the MUMOK exhibition will include Analogue, a series of 412 photographs produced between 1998 and 2009 in which Leonard investigates the changes in the urban landscape and economy resulting from a rapidly advancing globalization.
Born in 1961 in Liberty, New York, Leonard is counted among the most outstanding figures in the art world today; in recent years she has consistently participated in international exhibitions such as the Whitney Biennial and the Documenta. The photographs Leonard has produced over the past twenty years reveal subtle discrepancies in our everyday life and draw out contradictions between nature and culture, the living and the transient, the local and the global. Both her color and black and white images feature a precise eye for details and for the overlooked.
Zoe Leonard is concerned with the language of photography in it’s various genres: aerial photography, scientific documentation, snapshots, fashion photography or documentation of exhibition display. She alternates point of view, perspective and distance by turning and shifting her gaze, and presents the photograph as a subjective document. Leonard also subverts the conventions of traditional processing and printing; she does not crop or retouch her photographs. Instead, her photographs always bear traces of their genesis. By incorporating the black border of the negative into the print, and leaving the spots and marks from dust, scratches or flaws in the negative, her prints allow the photographic process to remain visible.
When installing her photographs, the artist is always mindful of the conditions of the respective space. 'Photographs', which was originally initiated by the Fotomuseum Winterthur, has been adapted and supplemented by the artist for this presentation in Vienna. Leonard worked closely with Michalka to realize the exhibition within the spaces and context of the MUMOK.
Curator
Matthias Michalka
online shop
Zoe Leonard – Fotografien
Exhibition Catalog
€ 50,-
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sponsors & Partners
Dorotheum, Art Photograpy Fund, Uniqua, Wittmann