ARTISTS
Above & Beyond: Photographs by Kacper Kowalski
The Curator Gallery is excited to present Above & Beyond: Photographs by Kacper Kowalski, curated by Bill Shapiro. The exhibition is the Polish photographer鈥檚 first solo show in the United States and runs from April 22 to May 30.
Kowalski, who has shown his work in Europe and Asia, has earned numerous accolades for his sustained focus on the complicated relationship between mankind and its environment. In February, he was honored with his third prestigious World Press Photo award (for Best Long Term Project) and in March, his book, Side Effects, was named as a Finalist in the Picture of the Year International competition.
Trained as an architect, Kowalski walked away from that career to pursue his twin passions: photography and flying. In Above & Beyond, Kowalski uses these talents to explore the ideal environment: Is it untouched, virgin land or a landscape that has been altered and adapted to suit our needs? His aerial photographs, taken from a self-piloted paraglider or gyrocopter, are stunning in their own right, but lead to meaningful questions: What makes something beautiful? Is it bold colors? Perfect shapes? Rhythmic patterns? But what if those soothing patterns are the result of industrial mining? What if those rich colors are caused by chemical runoff? Can they still be beautiful?
With an architect鈥檚 exacting eye for composition, structure and symmetry, Kowalski turns everyday locations into magical, ethereal visions. His photographs, which often appear abstract and without contextual clues, are frequently labeled with latitudes and longitudes representing the exact coordinates where the picture was made, rather than traditional titles or captions. 鈥淚 want to give the viewer a pure visual impression, free of context. This is what it鈥檚 like for me when I鈥檓 flying,鈥� he says. 鈥淚n the air, I only have my instruments; there are no captions on the ground to help me make sense of what I鈥檓 looking at. My photographs -- like the land I see from 1,500 feet up -- should be open to your interpretation.鈥�
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The Curator Gallery is excited to present Above & Beyond: Photographs by Kacper Kowalski, curated by Bill Shapiro. The exhibition is the Polish photographer鈥檚 first solo show in the United States and runs from April 22 to May 30.
Kowalski, who has shown his work in Europe and Asia, has earned numerous accolades for his sustained focus on the complicated relationship between mankind and its environment. In February, he was honored with his third prestigious World Press Photo award (for Best Long Term Project) and in March, his book, Side Effects, was named as a Finalist in the Picture of the Year International competition.
Trained as an architect, Kowalski walked away from that career to pursue his twin passions: photography and flying. In Above & Beyond, Kowalski uses these talents to explore the ideal environment: Is it untouched, virgin land or a landscape that has been altered and adapted to suit our needs? His aerial photographs, taken from a self-piloted paraglider or gyrocopter, are stunning in their own right, but lead to meaningful questions: What makes something beautiful? Is it bold colors? Perfect shapes? Rhythmic patterns? But what if those soothing patterns are the result of industrial mining? What if those rich colors are caused by chemical runoff? Can they still be beautiful?
With an architect鈥檚 exacting eye for composition, structure and symmetry, Kowalski turns everyday locations into magical, ethereal visions. His photographs, which often appear abstract and without contextual clues, are frequently labeled with latitudes and longitudes representing the exact coordinates where the picture was made, rather than traditional titles or captions. 鈥淚 want to give the viewer a pure visual impression, free of context. This is what it鈥檚 like for me when I鈥檓 flying,鈥� he says. 鈥淚n the air, I only have my instruments; there are no captions on the ground to help me make sense of what I鈥檓 looking at. My photographs -- like the land I see from 1,500 feet up -- should be open to your interpretation.鈥�
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