RogerBallen: Retrospective

RogerBallen: Retrospective

The retrospective traces the work of American-born South African artist RogerBallen since the 1980s. In his early work, Ballen followed the documentary photography tradition, but over time developed a different and distinctive style that he himself characterizes as "Ballenesque." Using drawing, painting, collage and sculpture techniques, the artist created a new aesthetic deeply rooted in photography's foundations through his multidisciplinary approach. Ballen's photographs, which also evoke the work of WalkerEvans, contain not only formal photographic elements such as texture, light and interaction with the subject, but also carry the purpose of witnessing and revealing lives that were marginalized during a time of social change. Similarly, the photographs of DianeArbus and EugeneMeatyard serve as starting points for Ballen; although formally distant in appearance, his photographs imbue the subject and objects with psychological intensity. The exhibition features a selection from the artist's series Dorps: Small Towns of South Africa, Platteland: Images from Rural South Africa, Foreign Land, Shadow Room, Guest House, Bird Sanctuary and Theatre of Ghosts, as well as an installation titled "BalleneskRoom."