Josef Sudek. Cacciatore di magia
12.06.2010 - 23.12.2010
Inaugurated in June 2010, the first exhibition of the Rolla Foundation is dedicated to the Czechoslovakian photographer Josef Sudek (1896-1976).
Josef Sudek is an enigmatic and fascinating artist, he is drawn to mysterious and moody visions, to the single detail that renders each photograph unique and to a technique that is often only apparently imperfect, above all in the printing. Sudek loves undefined greys, tones often considered by his contemporaries as lacking in style that he actually emphasises in his choice of printing contact prints. The loss of his arm during the First World War did not put an end to his interest in photography, on the contrary, it made photography the centre of his work life. With great patience, Sudek set about waiting, at times for hours, or for whole days, for the right moment. In this case it is not a euphemism to assert that he writes with light, with the specific light that characterises each release of his camera’s shutter.
The exhibition includes twenty-five vintage photographs ranging from panoramic shots, views from Sudek’s studio window, of the studio itself, to photos of wild nature or of gardens that seem like scenery for a show, apparently natural but actually perfectly arranged.
Two portfolios will introduce the vintage photographs. One is a collection of 13 images named for him and edited in 1976 (the year of his death) and the 18 photographs from Profily/1, published by "Panorama" in 1980 (a Czech review that Sudek worked with from 1931 until his death).
Josef Sudek
Židle u okna
(Chair by the window), 1972,
gelatin silver print
23 × 17,5 cm
During World War I he was drafted into the Austro-Hungarian army in 1915 and served on the Italian front until he was wounded in 1916 in the right arm, resulting in the amputation of the limb at the shoulder. Already interested in photography in the years before the Great War, Josef Sudek deepened his skills during a three-year stay in the military hospital. His attention turns particularly to Prague, whose complex architecture he highlights, even in panoramic photographs, and which he almost always depicts devoid of people. There are many photographs devoted to everyday objects. His home provides him with the cue for a lifelong quest, the most common and simple objects and the natural light under which Sudek shoots take on in his images a romantic realistic style with which he distinguishes himself.
Pages: 48 Softcover
Illustrations: 25 four-color print
Language: Italian/English
Texts: Alberto Nessi
Edition: Fondazione Rolla, 2010
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(Magic forest, Prague), 1955,
gelatin silver print
17,8 × 22,9 cm
installation view
installation view
installation view
(Tree study), 1970,
gelatin silver print
20,8 × 28,8 cm
Untitled,
gelatin silver contact print
6,2 × 14,2 cm
Zimní Praha
(Charles bridge and the Hradchin in winter), 1958,
gelatin silver print
27 × 37,5 cm
Zmizelè Sochy
(Disappeared Statues), 1974
gelatin silver print
23 × 18 cm
Zmizelè Sochy
(Disappeared Statues), 1974
gelatin silver print
18 × 23 cm
Zmizelè Sochy
(Disappeared Statues), 1974
gelatin silver print
18 × 23 cm
Zmizelè Sochy
(Disappeared Statues), 1974
gelatin silver print
18 × 23 cm
Untitled
(from the cycle "Walking in Mionsi"), 1952
gelatin silver contact print
22,5 × 17 cm
(Prague panorama), 1963,
gelatin silver print
17,8 × 60,2 cm
(Square in Bohemian town), 1961,
gelatin silver print
9 × 29,6 cm
(Landscape in Prague), 1965,
gelatin silver contact print
11,8 × 22,8 cm
(Bohemian landscape), 1950-55,
gelatin silver contact print
9,6 × 29,2 cm
Untitled,
gelatin silver contact print
8 × 10 cm
(Hukwaldy panorama), 1965,
gelatin silver print
9,6 × 29,2 cm
(Leaves with drewdrops), 1958,
gelatin silver contact print
24,1 × 17,8 cm
(The cottage of the artist Malina), 1958,
gelatin silver print
23,8 × 17,8 cm
Untitled
(from the "Magic Garden" series), 1950s,
gelatin silver print
23,7 × 30,2 cm
Untitled
(from the office of the Architect Otto Rhotmayer, shortly after his death), 1955,
gelatin silver print
12 × 17 cm
Untitled
(from the office of the Architect Otto Rhotmayer, shortly after his death), 1955,
gelatin silver print
12 × 17 cm
Untitled
(from the office of the Architect Otto Rhotmayer, shortly after his death), 1955,
gelatin silver print
17,3 × 11,5 cm
(Still life with bread), 1960,
gelatin silver print
16,5 × 22,2 cm
(Still life with apple and pear), 1950-54,
gelatin silver print
16,5 × 21,9 cm
Akt., 1950s,
gelatin silver print
12 × 8,5 cm
Josef Sudek
pages 128
first edition
dimensions 15.5 × 13.5 cm, softcover
language English
ISBN 0714841684