Common Themes: Falling in Contempory Photography (UPDATE)


fall5 © elijah gowin. 2006 All rights reserved.


La chute © Denis Darzacq. 2006 All rights reserved.


Porch © kerry skarbakka. 2002 All rights reserved.

Its always interesting to me to see how different photographers approach the same themes. Notice how the environment, coloring and location set the mood as well a composition. If you're up in new york you have a chance to go see Elija Gowin's project at Robert Mann Gallery on 210 Eleventh Avenue between 24th & 25th Streets.

Thanks, "Anonymous" for pointing out two other Falling/Jumping works. One is by Yves Klein, a French Artist who worked in the 50s and early 60s. In 1960 he documented a performance of him jumping off a ledge and the resulting phtoograph as documentation entitled Saut dans le vide (Leap into the Void).


Saut dans le vide (Leap into the Void). © yves klein. 1960 All rights reserved.

The other Artist mentioned is Bas Jan Ader who is another performance biased artist whose work is now largely preserved at photography.


Broken Fall (Organic) © Bas Jan Ader. 1971/94 All rights reserved.

I also just remembered that Young British Artist group member Sam Taylor-Wood has a whole series of falling and suspensions that are also strikingly along the same lines as the works above.

Self Portrait Suspended I © Sam Taylor-Wood. 2004 All rights reserved.


Self Portrait Suspended VII © Sam Taylor-Wood. 2004 All rights reserved.


Bram Stoker's Chair II © Sam Taylor-Wood. 2005 All rights reserved.


Falling VI © Sam Taylor-Wood. 2003 All rights reserved.