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Carla Åhlander, 5 Street Cleaners, 2003, C-Print | | |
Press release
In her show Carla Åhlander (born 1966 in Lund, Sweden) presents two new photo series as well as a number of drawings.
The series "outside" shows night shows of windows. As image within the image, the nocturnal darkness of the public surrounding is opponent to the brightly lit private space. By the means of the absence of people and by ignoring superficial emotionality, the voyeuristic gaze achieves the isolation of urban inhabitants.The strict formal arrangement within the series counteracts an individual localization of what is shown. As in former photographic approaches to social systems and their (predetermined) patterns by means of subtle and intimate pictures of architectures (such as in her series of school rooms in Graz or of district administration registration offices in Berlin), Carla Åhlander documents from a point of observing distance, still leaving room for a narrative moment which can be experienced in everday life.
The second series, "Cigarette Seller" (b&w photographs) shows a Vietnamese cigarette seller waiting for clients on the street in Berlin.
The serial coverage intensifies the impression of apparent monotony. In Åhlander`s photographs, the actions of the persons are often radically reduced (to waiting, poising) and they seem to be captured or stiffened in their activities. They often deal with people who, due to existing invisible power structures and social orders, are pushed to the edge of perception. However, their fates are usually removed from individuality, represent anonymity; rather, the documentation addresses governmental order, the organization of work and its assignation of roles.
Special attention is paid to making visible life's realities of women. For the first time, Carla Åhlander is presenting drawings with the self-explanatory title "Women Who Carry Things". |
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