Talia Chetrit
10·Corso·Como, Milan
From September 18th until November 17th, 2024
The images of Talia Chetrit occupy a space and time that are difficult to define: they possess the immediacy of a snapshot and the slightly faded quality of a moment of life captured on film, yet when faced with them, we have the sensation of something that has been carefully planned, of a tension toward the compositional and narrative aspects of the images, which the artist enhances through a precise choreography of poses and accessories. Chetrit makes a straightforward yet nuanced use of the photographic lens, drawing from the history of photography while raising questions around themes of self-representation, sexuality, and power dynamics. Her images—both poetic and provocative as well as carefully elaborated—combine emotional intensity and compositional quality: they are a critical exercise on what it means to look at an image and what it feels like to pose for the lens, an investigation into the formal implications of framing and the psychological dynamics that emerge when we become the subject of the frame. Self-portraits, family scenes, still life, and street photography; no subject is excluded from Chetrit’s artistic practice, which questions the current validity of photographic genres, infusing the images with the candor of fragility and a sense of provocation. The title of the exhibition suggests the multiplicity of meanings that the word gut evokes in English: beyond its literal meaning, the word metaphorically embodies ideas of courage or boldness, or it refers to a visceral emotional reaction or instinct. In this sense, the title reflects the multiplicity of formal and existential themes contained in the works.
“Though I’ve consistently worked with my entire archive of negatives — starting from the early-mid nineties to today — this show specifically features photographs from my exhibition history. Similarly to how I’ve edited books of my work, I’m interested in the opportunity to combine threads and create a dialogue between my past shows”.
Recent shots are presented alongside photographs taken in the mid-1990s—such as Logo (1996/2017) and Face #1 (1994/2017)—in which Chetrit, then a teenager, captures her childhood friends. Another early work, Murder Picture #3 (1997/2017), depicts a friend of the artist posing as a murder victim in what appears to be a subway car. These images evoke the violence and voyeurism of contemporary society: if we consider time as the quintessential material of photography, this gesture takes on a dual meaning; on one hand, it highlights how, as human beings, we exist in time, and on the other, it underscores how we express the continuous changes in our sensibilities through historically determined forms, such as fashion. Later works, like the self-portraits Untitled (Body) and Self-portrait (Mesh Layer), combine staging, exhibitionism, and self-parody, challenging traditional representations of femininity. The exhibition also includes portraits of Chetrit’s family members, exploring the stereotypes and contradictions of family relationships. Even in these works, fashion is present as an element of identity exploration and social conventions: Chetrit also uses a telescopic lens to capture urban scenes, where subjects are anonymous and blurred, without emotional connection. The still lifes in the exhibition, such as Angels and Rubber Nipple, convey psychological tensions and themes like romantic love and parenthood. The work Studio Chair suggests the connection between seduction, abandonment, and absence. Like contemporary life—or life itself—Talia Chetrit’s art can at times seem disconcerting: it communicates honesty while contemplating deception, delves into emotions while analyzing their contradictions. Each of these works invites us to reflect on the multifaceted nature of human relationships and the ways in which connections are shaped, normalized, and perpetuated through the realm of representation.
For further information 10corsocomo.com.
