Opposites Attract : A Love Story
Absurd and normal go hand in hand.
In life, we experience moments where it seems we are in the wrong place at the wrong time. We just don’t feel like we belong. Sometimes we even doubt whether we belong anywhere at all.
Taking this aspect, we occasionally find similar situations in our surroundings. Ever wondered what that couch is doing on the street corner? Or who put that sign up over a beautifully decorated wall? In our day to day lives we are constantly confronted by contradictions, which may or may not subconsciously influence us.
Creating a mix of seemingly non-compatible objects and surroundings, take a look at the story “Space Invaders” by David Vaaknin. Apart from alluding to the famous classic arcade game, the title hints at objects that don’t quite fit into their environment, i.e. “invade” the space they are in.
Vaaknin, a Jerusalem based photographer specialising in environmental portraiture, landscape and travel photography, shows his skill and keen eye in full force.
In his work, stunning natural and urban scenes are shown accompanied by an object that sticks out in one way or another. The colours and lighting are often dramatic in style, but the out-of-place object adds a comedic effect, especially when keeping the title in mind.
This comedic effect does not mean the object is in a sense ugly; on the contrary, it is suddenly a fascinatingly beautiful addition to an equally beautiful setting. The objects make the image more interesting simply by just being there.
It’s the little details that make the photos such fun. For instance, how many times would you get the opportunity to take a photograph of a plane and a flying pig at the same time? When would you find a stop sign in the middle of nowhere?
Vaaknin truly understands how to combine humour and beauty in a clean and simple fashion, both pleasing the viewer’s eye and mood.
The next photographer, Judy Mauer, uses her photography skills to play with the viewer’s perception. In her story “New York Dolls” she creates interesting optical illusions with mannequins and reflections in shop windows, thus combining inanimate human-like objects with the New York urban surroundings.
The dolls pose as interesting subjects, with their extreme headgear and eye-catching clothes. The statuesque bodies and empty faces are intertwined with the real world, making it difficult for the viewer to distinguish what is behind the glass.
Mauer herself states that the reflections in the photographs are not double exposures, nor are they superimposed.
Impressive architecture throws its shadow across the scene, adding a dramatic element to Mauer’s photographs. The dolls almost become more human, as if standing in appreciation of their urban surroundings.
Playing with this technique gives the photographer the freedom to bring two worlds together — the shop window’s static, controlled environment and New York’s characteristic urban atmosphere.
This collection of photos makes the viewer more aware of these clashes of different worlds. Maybe next time, walking down the high-street in your city, you might stop and see what world you can put the mannequins in.
Finally, ending on a humourous note, we take a look at Katsumi Saiki’s story “Horses”. The Japanese photographer takes photographs of people in different surroundings — the only thing is, they are all wearing horse masks.
This collection of photos is a breath of fresh air, showing people’s personalities without actually showing their faces. This anonymity adds a lot to the general fun feeling of the photos. One, the hilarity of the horse masks makes the viewer giggle, two, the poses the subjects strike add a sense of familiarity to the image.
Saiki describes this process of taking photographs as “sessions”, a term usually used in the music business. This way, opposed to “shoots”, the subjects can freely show who they are in the photographs, while the photographer captures the moments spontaneously.
The subjects seem like friends, having fun in front of the camera, despite the anonymity of the masks. This makes the images fun for the viewer, both beautiful to look at and funny to imagine what the situation was like when the moment was captured.
The viewer basically spends the day with the horse headed crew, going to the beach, dancing in the park blowing bubbles, hanging around in the playground, just having fun with friends, which gives a warm feeling of familiarity — a feeling we sometimes miss on grey days at work.
In conclusion, we can safely say that everything has its place in the world. Just because something doesn’t seem to fit, doesn’t mean it doesn’t belong there. The images we’ve seen clearly show that opposites come together in our environment, clashing and creating a beautiful hybrid of normal and abnormal, old and new, natural and man-made. In the end, it seems it all belonged together from the start.
Rinse has invited lots of talented photographers from around the world to share their best works. If we haven’t reached out to you yet, and you also have a great story to tell, please don’t hesitate to come share it with us at Rinse.
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