Witkin

by Joel-Peter Witkin, Germano Celant, Italy) Castello di Rivoli (Museum : Rivoli

Few living photographers are as consistently controversial and provocative as Joel-Peter Witkin, whose work elicits hostility and admiration in equal measure. Shocking and compelling, the photographs in this retrospective collection reach to the outer limits of human nature. 100 full-page reproductions, printed in four colors.

Genres: Photography, Art, Horror, Nonfiction, Art and Photography

272 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1995

About the author

Joel-Peter Witkin is an American photographer who lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico. His work often deals with such themes as death, corpses (and sometimes dismembered portions thereof), and various outsiders such as dwarfs, transsexuals, hermaphrodites, and physically deformed people. Witkin's complex tableaux often recall religious episodes or famous classical paintings.

Reviews

[Nish · Rating 5 out of 5]

Witkin is incredible. One can see how much his stuff has been plagiarised by mass culture. Take the Nine Inch Nails Closer video; the bondage, the crucified monkey, the aviator goggles. He is a photographic master blending the beautiful with the grotesque. Examples include: "a severed head on a plate, Siamese twins joined at the head, hermaphroditic Venuses, a dead-meat cornucopia, a man on a bed of nails...all interspersed with visual references to classic art pieces and Christian iconography." He uses the daguerreotype format to produce sensual and ancient work. Brilliant and subversive.

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, this is one of the more interesting/disturbing books I own. It was a gift to me a number of years ago. Judging by the slightly incorrect review...I wonder if people are aware that many of the subjects are actually corpses from abroad?? The piece entitled "The Kiss" does not appear to be: "the disembodied, almost skeletal heads of two gnarled old men locked in an intimate kiss" (Direct from the review on this site). More accurately, this is what that photograph is: "The Kiss" (Le Baiser), New Mexico, 1982, is an image of a single autopsied head that’s been sliced in half down the middle, and posed as two separate beings locked in a kiss." I know that is a minor inaccuracy, but worth pointing out in my opinion. The review offered does not explicitly mention the uses of corpses as subjects. Maybe I'm alone in finding that somewhat controversial. All the people I've shown this book to have been blown away/disturbed/intrigued...However, the people that bothered to post on this site seemed to take it in stride. Hence, my wondering if everyone was aware of the corpse situation. Color me innocent and naive I suppose. I guess I'm just not macabre and cool enough.

[Amanda Platter]

Awesome photography (old school--no digital) feature dwarfs, mutants, and freaks in odd costumes and crazy positions. Mostly naked.

[Íris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eu nem estava a pensar em escrever review, mas para este livro - quero dizer, para este autor - sinto que devo.

Witkin é daquelas pessoas que "pensa fora da caixa" usando métodos já maioritariamente abandonados. É um artista que saboreia a demora dos processos já tidos como obsoletos ou maçudos.
Mas não é só isso. Ele foi um passo mais à frente e saiu da zona de conforto da maior parte das pessoas. Resolveu pegar nos freaks de circos de horror e fazer representações ao seu estilo de obras de arte da Arte Clássica, como a Vénus do Nilo, por exemplo.

Não só foi um passo mais além como me fez acreditar a princípio que as fotografias tinham sido feitas pouco depois da descoberta da fotografia, pois ele usa ainda placas de vidro para revelar e o resultado é simplesmente impressionante. Na pós-produção, quando a maior parte das pessoas usam Photoshop, ele na verdade usa uma esponja, por vezes diluente e alguma água, para lhe dar aquele ar vitoriano que tantos apreciam.
Ao apreciarmos o seu trabalho, sem saber que na verdade são trabalhos relativamente recentes, temo um arrepio na espinha e pensamos como realmente tudo parecia mais ominoso, obscuro e frio naquela época. Chega a ser mais assustador e horripilante que as fotografias post-mortem. Acredito que foi daqui que Witkin retirou a sua inspiração.

A quem não for facilmente impressionado com as imperfeições chocantes do corpo humano e gostar também de Arte Clássica, recomendo absolutamente. Impressionante.

[Helena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wish I owned it!

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my first photography books

[Andrew Wale · Rating 5 out of 5]

A dark genius x