The 99th Fable p7

Comment

Comment by Resident Curator on April 9, 2012 at 8:39pm

Curator’s Comment:  

 

The 99^th Fable photograms are unmistakably narrative in their direct, explicit use of silhouettes, but the organic gray and black articulations of the backgrounds provide a rich and mystical sensibility. The crackled patterning of the dark background insinuates natural forms, or a more sinister web that threatens to trap and entangle the small white figures.  This piece in the series is especially beautiful, as the negative “cut out” figures are rendered insignificant, and at the mercy of outside forces as they float within a sea of alternating darkness and light.  The ghostly images of the high waterfall and brightly shining light underscore the primal relationships between ancient motifs. In fact, the contrast of the media and process seems to best reveal this dark/light, good/evil dichotomy, especially as illustrated by the iconic figures in other images.  Part 2 is elegant in the overarching line of the dragon’s neck, unexpectedly twisting back to the standing, stoic figure.  Here, I appreciate the inclusion of small amounts of text to help tell the story, but personally feel that the work is most powerful when the images speak for themselves.  In Parts 1 and later in 13 (assuming they’re sequential) the figure assumes a posture more typical of a seated Buddha, still and serene in the face of danger and destruction.  These graphic images are enduring, timeless stories.