ART CITIES:Vienna- Allan Sekula

Left: Allan Sekula, Large and small disasters (Islas Cíes and Bueu, 12-20-02), 2002-03, Cibachrome print, 129 x 69,2 x 6 cm (framed), Photo: The Estate of Allan Sekula, Courtesy Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Collection. Right: Allan Sekula, Message in a Bottle, chapter 5, from Fish Story, 1992-94, 7 Cibachrome prints and 2 text panels, Dimensions variable, Photo: The Estate of Allan Sekula, Courtesy Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary CollectionAllan Sekula is a renowned American photographer, cultural theorist, historian writer and activist. His extraordinary body of experimental work has mainly been concerned with chronicling the social, economic and political dynamics of life on the oceans and exploring the consequences of globalization, as well as the function ofdocumentary photography in the media, art and society.

By Dimitris Lempesis
Photo: TBA21 Archive

“Allan Sekula: Okeanos” at TBA21, is a monographic exhibition exploring the legacy of Allan Sekula. Drawing from the Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary (TBA21) Collection, the exhibition is charting the artist’s research into and investigation of the oceans, which make up most of our increasingly fragile hydrosphere.  The exhibition features a selection of seminal works from Sekula’s multi-faceted oeuvre. Three chapters from Sekula’s magnum opus “Fish Story” evocatively document maritime spaces and the effects of globalization. Other important works featured in the exhibition include two films: “Tsukiji”, (2001) and “Lottery of the Sea” (2006), as well as photographic works from Sekula’s series “Black Tide / Marea negra”, “Large and small disasters (Islas Cíes and Bueu, 12-20-02)” and “Self-portrait (Lendo, 12-22-02)” (all 2002-03). Allan Sekula grew up in the port town of San Pedro, California and since the 1970 his artistic and theoretical work critically and passionately investigated the exploitative geopolitical configurations and labor relations active on our seas and in the super ports that almost invisibly manage the shipment and distribution of goods throughout a highly interconnected world. The shipping industry, seemingly a relic of the first industrial revolution, today moves more than 80 percent of the world’s commodities and is thus not only a central but also a severely under-regulated and disregarded site of globalization. Sekula’s indefatigable research into sea trade and the maritime space articulates the oceans’s pivotal function in the world’s industrial systems but also voices the vulnerability of its ecosystems and the social and personal precariousness of the actors engaged in sea-based industries. The film program “Sekula beyond Sekula”, curated by Filipa Ramos and Cory Scozzari, features a series of films explores Sekula’s legacy and the way it has inspired a younger generation of artists to contribute new meanings and interpretations to his work. Many of the films interweave a critique of late capitalism with political commentary and social documentation, both of which play a significant role in Sekula’s oeuvre. Starting 3/3/17, each Friday at 18:00 a different film will be screened within the exhibition. Films by: Julieta Aranda, Will Benedict and David Leonard, Hannah Black, CAMP (Shaina Anand and Ashok Sukumaran), Lucien Castaing-Taylor and Véréna Paravel, Jennifer Chan, Rob Chavasse, Tyler Coburn, Morag Keil and Georgie Nettell, Mikhail Karikis, Andrew Norman Wilson, Jaakko Pallasvuo and Hito Steyerl.

Info: Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary (TBA21), Atelier Augarten, Scherzergasse Vienna, Duration: 21/2-24/5/17, Days & Hours: Wed-Thu 12:00-17:00, Fri-Sun 12:00-19:00, www.tba21.org

Allan Sekula, Middle Passage, chapter 3, from Fish Story, 1994, 22 Cibachrome prints and 4 text panels, Dimension variable, Photo: The Estate of Allan Sekula, Courtesy Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Collection
Allan Sekula, Middle Passage, chapter 3, from Fish Story, 1994, 22 Cibachrome prints and 4 text panels, Dimension variable, Photo: The Estate of Allan Sekula, Courtesy Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Collection

 

 

Allan Sekula, Message in a Bottle, chapter 5, from Fish Story, 1992-94, 7 Cibachrome prints and 2 text panels, Dimensions variable, Photo: The Estate of Allan Sekula, Courtesy Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Collection
Allan Sekula, Message in a Bottle, chapter 5, from Fish Story, 1992-94, 7 Cibachrome prints and 2 text panels, Dimensions variable, Photo: The Estate of Allan Sekula, Courtesy Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Collection

 

 

Allan Sekula, Message in a Bottle, chapter 5, from Fish Story, 1992-94, 7 Cibachrome prints and 2 text panels, Dimensions variable, Photo: The Estate of Allan Sekula, Courtesy Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Collection
Allan Sekula, Message in a Bottle, chapter 5, from Fish Story, 1992-94, 7 Cibachrome prints and 2 text panels, Dimensions variable, Photo: The Estate of Allan Sekula, Courtesy Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Collection