Out Of Focus: Photography exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery

  For the first time since I went to the New Art from the Middle East exhibition back in 2009, I decided to go and visit the Saatchi gallery.  Not really knowing what to expect, I boarded the Victoria line and strolled my way there from Pimlico Station.  Oh rejoice! the free entry!  How can you complain about nothing to do in this city - there are so many free attractions!

  Currently showing is the Out of Focus: Photography exhibition, which is a collection of works by fairly contemporary photographers.  Theres is no particular theme running throughout the exhibition other than to showcase the cream of the crop - which Saatchi is best known for.  He is especially praised for bringing to light, cutting edge talent within the art scene.  Hirst perhaps being his prime example.

Here are a few of my favourite works;

Meredyth Sparks - Gudrun Constructed series (2008)

This series of photo collage is an intriguing play on Constructivism and the abstract form.  The artist reworks found imagery by collaging over the top, drawing into or painting.  The images themselves are not too far removed from the well known painting by Marcel Duchamp Nude Descending a Staircase.  Within the works the geometric shapes rationalise the movement of the photographs subject, displacing the emphasis and therefore guiding the viewers eye to certain aspects of the arrangement; face, legs, hands and feet.  The artist is particularly interested in the representation of musical sub-cultures and the historical avant-garde and is seeking to explore "ever-evolving legacies of labour and gender based issues". 

David Noonan - all Untitled (2008)

These images have an absolutely haunting presence within the gallery space.  Multiple exposure and layering of apparently found imagery creates an illusion of ghostly memories, haunting thoughts and almost dream-like visions.  The image topics have a ritualistic subject matter, strange costumes, masks, woodlands all seem to give the impression of some sort of witchcraft or pagan gathering.  

  John Stezaker 

Old Mask V (2006)

Old Mask IV (2006)

Marriage IV (2006)

Untitled XXVI (2007)

Through the use of found photography and imagery, John Stezaker explores our preconceived notion of gender and age.  He creates unexpected twists through image juxtaposition, offering multiple view points on which to analyse his finished results.  Familiarity is often a key to his work, through use of photography of famous faces; we instantly feel a connection but then upon looking twice we get a sense of unsurety as we seek to determine the connection between the imagery chosen.  

I particularly enjoy his Old Mask collage works; I feel they are a clever play upon the idea of age, structure, stature and strength.  The identity of the faces are pretty much wiped out and replaced with sometimes grand examples of historic architecture, bridges over rivers or a solitary country lane.  All are seemingly a humorous poke at our reactions to age and how we don't necessarily judge the age of a building in the way that we judge the appearance of an elderly person.   

The rest of the works by the features artists can be found on the Saatchi Gallery website .