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Roger Ballen
Muse – Roger Ballen, Black and White, Staged, Lightbox, Venice Biennale

2009

About the Item

Roger Ballen Muse, from the series 'The Theatre of Apparitions', 2009 One sided Texflex Lightbox, Powder coated Ferro Black Lightbox 100 x 100 x 9 cm (39 3/8 x 39 3/8 x 3 1/2 in.) Edition of 3 (#1/3) A Label signed by the artist is provided All lightboxes can also be purchased as a double-sided lightbox with another print by Roger Ballen of your choice from this same series 'The Theatre of Apparitions'. – About Roger Ballen Considered one of the most original image-makers of the twenty-first century, American-born photographer Roger Ballen has lived and worked in South Africa for four decades. His latest work, Asylum of the Birds, is set within the confines of a makeshift house on the outskirts of Johannesburg, a place inhabited by individuals at the absolute margins of society. In this anarchic place, the human and animal inhabitants collaborate as Ballen’s cast in an on going series of quasi-directed performances. As we enter Ballen’s layered netherworld the images simultaneously repel and compel our gaze and transport us to an even darker dream world, that of the fears within our own imagination. The omnipresent birds, both alive and dead, signal a foreboding reminiscent of Hitchcock, while simultaneously suggesting hope and freedom. While the word ‘asylum’ could be defined a place of insanity, it also suggests refuge and persists in our mind as a metaphor for redemption. Says Ballen of his work; “My purpose in taking photographs over the past forty years has ultimately been about defining myself. It has been fundamentally a psychological and existential journey.” The photographer studied psychology at the University of California, and later his PhD at the Colorado School of Mines, specialising in Mineral Economics. Ballen was originally drawn to South Africa to work as a geologist, but his enthusiasm for photography strengthened, and he has been taking images there for nearly fifty years. Ballen has had over 50 exhibitions worldwide, and his work is being collected by some 40 museums worldwide, including the Folkwang, Essen, LACMA, Los Angeles, Musée de l’Elysée, Lausanne, Stedelijk, Amsterdam, Victoria and Albert, London, Centre Pompidou, Paris, and the MoMA, New York, just to name a few. – Roger Ballen, Photography, B/W, Animal, Human, People, Abstract, Surreal, Disturbing, Piano, Lightboxes, The Theatre of Apparitions
  • Creator:
    Roger Ballen (1950, American)
  • Creation Year:
    2009
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 39.38 in (100 cm)Width: 39.38 in (100 cm)Depth: 3.55 in (9 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Period:
  • Framing:
    Frame Included
    Framing Options Available
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    Zurich, CH
  • Reference Number:
    1stDibs: LU1280112625122

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Injured – Roger Ballen, Black and White, Staged, Lightbox, Venice Biennale
By Roger Ballen
Located in Zurich, CH
Roger Ballen Injured, from the series 'The Theatre of Apparitions', 2007 One sided Texflex Lightbox, Powder coated Ferro Black Lightbox 100 x 100 x 9 cm (39 3/8 x 39 3/8 x 3 1/2 in.)...
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Early 2000s Black and White Photography

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Waif – Roger Ballen, Contemporary, Abstract, Art, Lightbox, Venice Biennale
By Roger Ballen
Located in Zurich, CH
Roger Ballen Waif, from the series 'The Theatre of Apparitions', 2012 One sided Texflex Lightbox, Powder coated Ferro Black Lightbox 100 x 86 x 9 cm (39 3/8 x 33 7/8 x 3 1/2 in.) Edi...
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2010s Black and White Photography

Materials

Textile, LED Light

Haunted – Roger Ballen, Black and White, Staged, Lightbox, Venice Biennale
By Roger Ballen
Located in Zurich, CH
Roger Ballen Haunted, from the series 'The Theatre of Apparitions', 2013 One sided Texflex Lightbox, Powder coated Ferro Black Lightbox 100 x 86 x 9 cm (39 3/8 x 33 7/8 x 3 1/2 in.) ...
Category

2010s Black and White Photography

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Textile, LED Light

Duality – Roger Ballen, Black and White, Staged, Lightbox, Venice Biennale
By Roger Ballen
Located in Zurich, CH
Roger Ballen Duality, from the series 'The Theatre of Apparitions', 2013 One sided Texflex Lightbox, Powder coated Ferro Black Lightbox 100 x 86 x 9 cm (39 3/8 x 33 7/8 x 3 1/2 in.) ...
Category

2010s Black and White Photography

Materials

Textile, LED Light

Voices – Roger Ballen, Black and White, Staged, Lightbox, Venice Biennale
By Roger Ballen
Located in Zurich, CH
Roger Ballen Voices, from the series 'The Theatre of Apparitions', 2012 One sided Texflex Lightbox, Powder coated Ferro Black Lightbox 100 x 86 x 9 cm (39 3/8 x 33 7/8 x 3 1/2 in.) E...
Category

2010s Black and White Photography

Materials

Textile, LED Light

Desperados – Roger Ballen, Black and White, Staged, Lightbox, Venice Biennale
By Roger Ballen
Located in Zurich, CH
Roger Ballen Desperados, from the series 'The Theatre of Apparitions', 2009 One sided Texflex Lightbox, Powder coated Ferro Black Lightbox 100 x 100 x 9 cm (39 3/8 x 39 3/8 x 3 1/2 i...
Category

Early 2000s Black and White Photography

Materials

Textile, LED Light

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