AUGUST SANDER – MEN WITHOUT MASKS

Posted on 2018-06-04

Over the course of a career spanning six decades and tens of thousands of negatives, August Sander created a nuanced sociological portrait of Germany comprising images of its populace, as well as its urban settings and dramatic landscapes. Working in a rigorous fashion, he pioneered a precise, unembellished photographic aesthetic that was formative to the establishment of the medium’s independence from painting and presaged conceptual art. The artist considered empathy toward his sitters to be critical to his work, and strove not to impose a portrayal upon an unwilling subject, but to enable self-portraits.

This exhibition features an extensive selection of rare large-scale Sander photographs. Made between 1910 and 1931, the portraits on view paint a picture of Germany’s complex socio-economic landscape in the years leading up to and through the Weimar Republic. These early examples of Sander’s oeuvre — in particular, the ‘Portfolio of Archetypes’, — laid the framework for ‘People of the 20th Century’, the artist’s larger, lifelong effort to catalogue contemporary German society through his photographs and to reveal the truth of its ethnic and class diversity.

Opposite – Boxer (Boxers), 1929-1972, printed 1972

Exhibition runs through to July 28th, 2018

Hauser & Wirth
23 Savile Row
London W1S 2ET

www.hauserwirth.com

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CINDY SHERMAN

Posted on 2018-06-04

Sherman’s current exhibition marks over three decades and seventeen exhibitions with Sprüth Magers. On view is her most recent body of work from 2016, which debuted in Europe at the Berlin gallery last year. Now, the show has been brought to the UK and includes several new and previously unseen works. In the large-scale colour portraits, the artist imagines herself as a cast of ‘grandes dames’ from the Golden Age of 1920s Hollywood cinema. Differing from Sherman’s earlier series, these actresses are presented outside of the filmic narrative, posing instead for what seem to be formal publicity shots. Despite their elaborate garb, coiffed hairdos and painted faces, the leading ladies are clearly in their twilight years, and the grave stoicism of their expressions gives way to instances of poignant vulnerability: fine lines emerge through caked-on make-up, and sinewy, aged hands seem at odds with the smooth polish of their owners’ faces. The actresses pose against digitally manipulated backgrounds that are suggestive of the film sets and backdrops of yesteryear. Skyscrapers, a busy café scene, manicured gardens and a classical landscape all feature within the series. One photograph created earlier this year, displays four actresses in different coloured tulle costumes. Seated together, they reference the historic popularity of sister acts in the entertainment industry.

Opposite – Untitled #477, 2008

Exhibition runs through to September 1st, 2018

Sprueth Magers
7 Grafton St
Mayfair
London W1S 4EJ

www.spruethmagerslondon.com

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