Produced as a Fundraising Edition for the 2016 NY Art Book Fair, this print connects to a larger body of work by British conceptual artist John Stezaker, exploring authenticity and theatricality through the manipulation of found images. The figure of the image - likely an actor - is delicately subtracted by cut-out though the silhouette still casts a shadow against the wall behind him. Giclée and silkscreen print with spot varnish, signed and numbered edition of 20.
John Stezaker (b. 1949 in Worcester, UK) is an English Conceptual artist who works primarily in the medium of photography and collage. He attended the Slade School of Fine Art in the 1960s and was a part of the first wave of artists in the UK to react against Pop Art. Stezaker’s work takes photographic tropes, such as portraiture, and uses them as vehicles to critique modern culture. Stezaker exactingly cuts apart images from Hollywood’s golden era, travel postcards, and books and magazines. He carefully reassembles these fragmented images to push against photography’s authority as purveyor of truth and memory. Stezaker’s uncanny collages draw influence from Dada and Surrealism and serve as a revolt against popular culture and idealism. Stezaker lives and works in London, UK. His work has been exhibited internationally, including the Museum of Modern Art, Tate Modern, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the 40th Venice Biennale in 1982.
