“The Chair”, 2019
Andreas’ statement and bio:
My photographic work of late possesses a close aesthetic relationship to performance art, drawing and painting. Process has become more and more important in my art practice. My aim has consistently remained within the parameters of the photographic medium in order to discover new ways to articulate my ideas visually. Experimentation and chance have become important tools in my research. In the Chair series, I outline myself with a flashlight and record these performances with a 4×5” camera on outdated black & white film. I then process the film by “painting” with traditional photo chemicals directly onto its surface. The negative is then used in the creation of a cyanotype print. My methodology has been to abandon a considerable amount of control and allow the material to take over in some unexpected and unpredictable ways.
My interest in the discourse of the medium’s potential can’t hide the fact that my work is anchored in a moral sensibility that relates to my upbringing. I spent the first 18 years of my life on a prison compound where my father was the warden and where daily interactions with convicts were common. These visual and real life experiences nurtured a sense of empathy in me for the human condition that has been a guiding force in my life as well as my work.
The idea for the Chair series was triggered upon reading the play Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett. In our over-saturated world of instant news, cynicism, and enjoyment in the misfortune of others, the play resonates during these times of social and political upheaval. As we seem to have lost our sense of respect for one another, especially towards people with differing views, my images from the Chair series raise a microcosm of broader existential questions that need to be addressed in our society.
Andreas Rentsch received his B.F.A. from Les Ecoles d’Arts Appliqués in Vevey, Switzerland and his M.F.A. in Studio Art from Stony Brook University. Having grown up on a prison compound where his father was the warden, Andreas’ work is an ongoing exploration of the connection of fate, geography, and politics in the direction of justice. Andreas’s work has been exhibited worldwide, including a solo exhibition at the Musée
de l’Elysée in Lausanne, Switzerland, and is in many museum collections (Musée de l’Elysée, Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk, Virginia, Musée de la Photographie in Charleroi, Belgium, Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington, NY, amongst others). He is a recipient of two New York Foundation for the Arts fellowships and two grants from the Polaroid Corporation. The prestigious photography magazine Aperture published one of his portfolios. Other pieces have been published in numerous books and magazines, including “The Polaroid Project,” a book published as part of a 7-museum exhibition of artists that have used the Polaroid film in their work.
Andreas has taught photography at various institutions such as Stony Brook University, St. John’s University, the International Center of Photography and is currently an Assistant Professor of Photography at Lycoming College.
More of Andreas’ work can be seen at www.andreasrentsch.com
Kent Krugh is a fine art photographer living in Cincinnati. kentkrugh.com
1 “Untitled”, from the series The Chair, Cyanotype
2 “Untitled”, from the series The Chair, Cyanotype
3 “Untitled”, from the series The Chair, Cyanotype
4 “Untitled”, from the series The Chair, Cyanotype
5 “Untitled”, from the series The Chair, Cyanotype
6 “Untitled”, from the series The Chair, Cyanotype
7 “Untitled”, from the series The Chair, Cyanotype
8 “Untitled”, from the series The Chair, Cyanotype
9 “Untitled”, from the series The Chair, Cyanotype
10 “Untitled”, from the series The Chair, Cyanotype
11 “Untitled”, from the series The Chair, Cyanotype
