Inspired by the National Photographic Portrait Prize we came across on our web wanderings the other day, we thought we would visit Art Gallery NSW where they happened to be showing over 45 photographic portraits from their collection in ‘Whats In A Face’, an exhibition that chronologically displays portraits taken from the late 19th Century through to 1900′s and to contemporary portraits. The exhibition focuses on the different practices between then through to now.
Then (late 19th Century) being about expressing ‘something of a person’s character, defining not only their individuality but also their social status’.
The In-Between (1900′s) being more about going ‘beyond portraiture of likeness’, experimenting with form, composition & technique so that the face and the person becomes an ‘allegory, a mood or simply an object’.
& the Now (now) bringing the subject back into the ‘socio-political’ sphere (we think it is a mix of this & those aforementioned practices of the past).
We wonder, as the line blurs between mediums of art (fashion, photography, illustration, video) what the Next holds.
(from top & chronologically) we have listed our highlights from the exhibition
‘Guadalupe de Rivera, Mexico’ 1924 by Edward Weston
‘Only to taste the warmth, the light, the wind’ 1939, Olive Cotton (one of our all time favourites)
‘The Movie Star: David Gulpilil On Bondi Beach’ 1985 by Tracey Moffatt
‘Shenae and Jade’ 2005 by Petrina Hicks
‘The Waiting Girl’, 2006 by Loretta Lux
