March 2008
TORMENT IN TIME/ PHOTOGRAPHS by Clive Cretney
March 7- 28, 2008/ Vernissage March 7, 2008/ 7-10 pm Tunes by dj Christopher Jabbour Proudly Sponsored by CKCU 93.1 FM
CLIVE CRETNEY ACKNOWLEDGES THE SUPPORT OF THE ONTARIO ARTS COUNCIL
Sick of seeing the pearly-toothed, glossy perfection displayed on every magazine cover, orange juice ad and night club flyer? Ready for something raw, subversive… and harking back to the aesthetics of 1862?
La Petite Mort presents Clive Cretney’s second solo exhibition; one to be remembered. Cretney’s reinterpretation of Guillaume-Benjamin Duchenne’s famous study on human facial expression. Cretney attacks the popular, modern aesthetic of the squeaky-clean poster child and delivers images ripe with humanity. The photographs capture the beauty of the imperfect. The gaping hollows of a mouth electrified into a type of grimace, a pointed eyebrow zigzagging over a bulging eye, a neck strained and contorted- you can be reassured that these photographs will not be staring out at you from the grocery store check-out aisle.
Written by Diana Merta
ARTIST’S STATEMENT:
These new photographs by the local artist explore the relationship of photographer and subject by partially re-enacting an experiment in physiognomy conducted in 1862 by French photographer Guillaume-Benjamin Duchenne.
Like all portraiture, the photographs in Torment in Time are a process of self-discovery, an investigation about being human. Visual statements of facial expression showing aggression, pain, joy or pleasure have over time changed from being documents of scientific data to images of beauty and idealized perfection. Somewhere along this timeline raw expressive mechanisms have been smothered or forgotten. The photographs in this exhibition display yesterdays images of pure rage and intense fear, contrary to today’s representations of socially acceptable have a nice day smiles and pouty facial gymnastics. These intimate portraits by Clive Cretney are an exploration of the subjects and their emotions within a specific environment and time. By reinventing the past, he has created images that intertwine photographic process with the timeless beauty of raw human expression.
Like all portraiture, the photographs in Torment in Time are a process of self-discovery, an investigation about being human. Visual statements of facial expression showing aggression, pain, joy or pleasure have over time changed from being documents of scientific data to images of beauty and idealized perfection. Somewhere along this timeline raw expressive mechanisms have been smothered or forgotten. The photographs in this exhibition display yesterdays images of pure rage and intense fear, contrary to today’s representations of socially acceptable have a nice day smiles and pouty facial gymnastics. These intimate portraits by Clive Cretney are an exploration of the subjects and their emotions within a specific environment and time. By reinventing the past, he has created images that intertwine photographic process with the timeless beauty of raw human expression.
Guy Berube, director
La Petite Mort Gallery