Imagicity | Photography | Dan McGarry, Proprietor

2000-April

See also: || 2000 || view slideshow

I've always been fascinated by the mediaeval sense of the grotesque. The
faces that adorn the pont neuf in Paris are of particular interest, because
they represent caricatures of the contemporary who's who. Every one of them
lampoons one of the patrons of the bridge itself.
This is a highly abstracted image drawn from one of them. I have another
that was scanned from a contact sheet. The quality is too poor, alas, to
display here. If I ever find the negative again, though, I'll be sure to
post it.

I've always been fascinated by the mediaeval sense of the grotesque. The faces that adorn the pont neuf in Paris are of particular interest, because they represent caricatures of the contemporary who's who. Every one of them lampoons one of the patrons of the bridge itself. This is a highly abstracted image drawn from one of them. I have another that was scanned from a contact sheet. The quality is too poor, alas, to display here. If I ever find the negative again, though, I'll be sure to post it.
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This figure provides an engaging view into the ambivalence that
many artists must have felt between the strictures of religious
iconography and the desire to explore the pithier elements of
human nature.

This figure provides an engaging view into the ambivalence that many artists must have felt between the strictures of religious iconography and the desire to explore the pithier elements of human nature.
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In the bowels of the oldest hotel in Europe (now a museum of early
Mediaeval and Roman antiquities) stands a collection of statues
broken, some by looters, some by the passage of time. This collection
of broken figures provide a haunting presence to anyone who spends
time in this subterranean chamber.

In the bowels of the oldest hotel in Europe (now a museum of early Mediaeval and Roman antiquities) stands a collection of statues broken, some by looters, some by the passage of time. This collection of broken figures provide a haunting presence to anyone who spends time in this subterranean chamber.
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This is a bit of an <em>homage</em> to Monet's studies of the cathedral
at Rouen, paintings which taught me as much about light as 5 years of
technical theatre work.

This is a bit of an <em>homage</em> to Monet's studies of the cathedral at Rouen, paintings which taught me as much about light as 5 years of technical theatre work.
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This statue - one of the symbols of Christian France retrieved from
mediaeval times - stands in ironic contrast to its environs. Place
st Michel is the gateway to the Left Bank, and is populated by
students, street vendors, vagrants and dealers.
In this context, the devil doesn't seem so much vanquished as telling
the Christian conqueror to get off his back.

This statue - one of the symbols of Christian France retrieved from mediaeval times - stands in ironic contrast to its environs. Place st Michel is the gateway to the Left Bank, and is populated by students, street vendors, vagrants and dealers. In this context, the devil doesn't seem so much vanquished as telling the Christian conqueror to get off his back.
View: small medium large

I've always been fascinated by the mediaeval sense of the grotesque. The
faces that adorn the pont neuf in Paris are of particular interest, because
they represent caricatures of the contemporary who's who. Every one of them
lampoons one of the patrons of the bridge itself.

I've always been fascinated by the mediaeval sense of the grotesque. The faces that adorn the pont neuf in Paris are of particular interest, because they represent caricatures of the contemporary who's who. Every one of them lampoons one of the patrons of the bridge itself.
View: small medium large

A somewhat stylised shot of Rebecca on one of the bridges over the Seine.
You wouldn't know from the photo that we were having a miserable day,
would you?

A somewhat stylised shot of Rebecca on one of the bridges over the Seine. You wouldn't know from the photo that we were having a miserable day, would you?
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This one got a lot of work, but it seems to have been worth it. The original
was spouting a rather prosaic stream of water into the uncaring urban
landscape surrounding Place Saint Michel in Paris.
Once I'd taken the water from out of his mouth, it occurred to me that he
needed a less mundane backdrop. So I gave him a stormy mountain scape,
taken in Banff some years ago.

This one got a lot of work, but it seems to have been worth it. The original was spouting a rather prosaic stream of water into the uncaring urban landscape surrounding Place Saint Michel in Paris. Once I'd taken the water from out of his mouth, it occurred to me that he needed a less mundane backdrop. So I gave him a stormy mountain scape, taken in Banff some years ago.
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Imagicity | Photography - exotica, mundanity and wonders | © Dan McGarry