Thomas Struth - Hilo Street, Jiyu Gaoka, Tokyo - image-1

Lot 561 D

Thomas Struth - Hilo Street, Jiyu Gaoka, Tokyo

Auction 1052 - overview Cologne
30.05.2015, 11:30 - Contemporary Art
Estimate: 30.000 € - 40.000 €
Result: 44.640 € (incl. premium)

Thomas Struth

Hilo Street, Jiyu Gaoka, Tokyo
2003

Chromogenic print, face-mounted to plexiglass. 140.4 x 182.9 cm (frame 183 x 223.6 cm). Print 2 from an edition of 10.

"For him [Struth, annot.], photographs of faces, facades and objects that surround us in everyday life are a means to fathom the fundamental truths about ourselves and our lives, the true picture often being obscured by attempts of superficial restoration. A good example of this are his shots of empty urban streets all over the world. The photographic composition of urban landscapes addresses the actual and symbolic substitution of people by buildings and cars. The remaining emptiness due to the absence of people and interpersonal encounters in busy neighbourhoods is filled with deserted streets that are merely interconnected by skyscrapers, more or less neglected apartment blocks, mansions and machines. […] In the collation of Struth's perspective, the emptiness and alienation projected in his cityscapes from various countries and continents stand for life's dehumanisation evoked by the growing global magnitude of urbanisation and technology. […] According to Struth, his objective is to photograph the collective subconsciousness (picking up on Benjamin's well-known catchphrase), at the same time, however, he also shows its figurative expression in the layout, the structures, styles, and the accumulation of unplanned and at times shabby urban configurations and their impact on the inhabitants' everyday life. Thus, Struth's pictures serve as an overwhelming connection between visible pretence and invisible content, from the first fleeting impression to a reflective immersion into the sense of our common urban visual experience. Our initial consternation as to the absence of human figures in these pictures suggests that they would still not be present as human beings even after the early hours of the morning (in which some of the pictures probably originated), when these deserted streets are filled with noisy cars and scurrying passerbys." (cited after: Ruth HaCohen and Yaron Ezrahi, In Räumen denken: Thomas Struths Poetik der Enthüllung, in: Annette Kruszynski et al. (ed.), Thomas Struth. Fotografien 1978 - 2010, exhib.cat. Kunsthaus Zürich et al., Munich 2010, p. 178f).

Certificate

Accompanied by a photo certficate by the artist dated March 26, 2015