State of the art #4

Roger Ballen Photography (via Conscientious) Every day is a bombardment of images. From commercials and pop-up ads to billboards and street signs to just trying to absorb the theater unfolding in front of us, there's so much vying for our attention and so little that sticks. But that's never a problem for Roger Ballen's challenging photographs, whose twisted juxtapositions I'm still trying to peel from my brain. An American-born, South African-based photographer, Ballen established his reputation documenting the dorps and rural outposts of his adopted country. Since then, however, he's taken a Lynchian turn for the weird. Works like Outland and Shadow Chamber feature troubling, surrealistic portraits, with Ballen's black-and-white monochromatics taking on a new sinister and grotesque feel. You can witness him delving in the dark corridors that we usually sidestep; you can feel the careful construction he's done to bring about these scenes. All in all, it's a brave deviation for someone who could easily have remained in a realistic mode. It's also very difficult to forget or look away, an increasingly noteworthy and necessary feat in these oversaturated days. * Buy Shadow Chamber * Buy Outland