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Exhibition: STILL LIFE, NO FRUIT - 29 April to March 13 - 25 Images of industrial abandonment and decay
In this exhibition, Mark Tedeschi shows us abandoned industrial sites and objects that are evocative of long lost functionality and that convey the pathos and eerie beauty that comes to buildings and objects from age and abandonment. Some of the images contain amazingly beautiful hues and shapes, while others are cheekily suggestive of long-lost worlds. Many of them, as the title suggests, convey Mark Tedeschi’s quirky sense of humour. He says:
“I have always felt that the “ugliness” of age and decay is beautiful, while conventional “beauty” can be boringly ugly. That goes for people as much as it does for buildings and objects. From the rotting canals of Venice to the rusting tin sheds of rural Australia, age and decay can exhibit a variety of textures and colours that twists our insides with their sheer beauty. That is why old buildings that have been over-renovated lose the patina of age and become dull and lifeless. I am sure that one of the reasons why we find decayed buildings and objects so intriguing is that the appearance of age is not something that we have created ourselves, but something that has slowly evolved from the forces of nature, despite our best efforts and intent. It is as though there has been an extended partnership between the original builder, now often long-gone, and nature to create a beauty that neither could have done alone. When I take photographs, of people or buildings, I try to create something that has a message or meaning or universal appeal that goes beyond the surface of the image. I delight in evocative ambiguities. A photograph of a magnificent old factory that is crumbling and full of dried bird droppings can tell us something about the past that is universal to us all. I also try to inject some humour. I believe that one shouldn’t be too serious in art-making. Often playfulness can help us capture some hidden truth or meaning”.
The artist
This is a very unusual exhibition for Mark Tedeschi. Most of his previous work has involved portraiture – of his colleagues in the law, of the residents of The Block in Redfern (which are now quite historical), of holocaust survivors in Australia, and his street photography in which he seeks to capture “unrepeatable moments”.
Mark Tedeschi’s photographs are included in the collections of the Art Gallery of NSW, the National Library of Australia, the NSW State Library, the Justice & Police Museum, and the Museum of Sydney. This is his 10th solo exhibition. He has been included in over 20 joint exhibitions in Australia, Italy and France. His images have been published extensively in books and journals. He has been a finalist in the National Photographic Portrait Prize at the NPG in Canberra (three times), the Moran Contemporary Photographic Prize, the “Head On” Photographic Portrait Prize at the Australian Centre for Photography in Sydney, and the Photographic Portrait Prize at the National Portrait Gallery in London.
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