Exhibition Review: Alexey Titarenko
Vasileostrovskaya Metro Station (Crowd 1), St. Petersburg, 1991-1992
From the series City of Shadows (1991-1994)
Unique toned gelatin silver print, handmade in the darkroom by the artist
Written by DieuLinh
Edited by Ben Blavat
In 1991, photographer and artist Alexey Titarenko was engulfed in the struggles and apprehension that ensued after the collapse of the Soviet Union. In his hometown of St. Petersburg, he used his camera to capture and make sense of the scenes he saw, like a flood of desperate people outside the entrance to the subway, desperate to get in.
Crowd on Sredniy Prospect (Crowd 3), St. Petersburg, 1992
From the series City of Shadows (1991-1994)
Unique toned gelatin silver print, handmade in the darkroom by the artist
Gradually, these scenes came together to become the expressive and moving series “City of Shadows” (1991-1994). Here, the longing, chaos and anxiety conveyed through the masterful usage of long exposure resembles the disarray of the crowds that occupied St. Petersburg at the time. The ghost-like peoople continue to haunt both history as well as these compositions. “These people were like shadows from the underworld,” Titarenko said in a press release. These evanescent crowds symbolize human suffering, hardship and desperation in a crestfallen environment.
In many ways, these wistful shots are Titarenko’s personal accounts — a visual novel of life in an oppressive Communist regime, offering us more dimension into the social and human context than black-and-white pages ever could. In lieu of consonants and vowels, Titarenko’s lexicon is composed of negative space, shadow and light, and skillful usage of long exposure.
White Dresses, St. Petersburg, 1995
Unique toned gelatin silver print, handmade in the darkroom by the artist
In “Nomenklatura of Signs” (1986-1991), Titarenko uses collages and photomontages to bypass limitations imposed on art and speech by the Communist government. Combining his negatives with images from magazines, columns from old newspapers and striking red linen, he was able to vocalize his criticism of the powerful bureaucrats — the “nomenklatura” — who were once untouchable. Mocking their dehumanizing propaganda and mistreatment of the Soviet people, Titarenko created a powerful biting critique of the Soviet life style.
Soviet Patriot, 1987
From the series Nomenklatura of Signs (1986-1991)
Vintage collage with gelatin silver print and red linen
Soviet Patriot, 1987
From the series Nomenklatura of Signs (1986-1991)
Vintage collage with gelatin silver print and red linen
Between frayed edges of red linen, comical yet rigid figures made out of aged newspaper, and metaphoric, suggestive images of the masses blurring into a fog-like shadow, Titarenko produces a poignant visual story depicting a dark time in history. Centered around the human experience, Titarenko awakens the empathy within each of us.
Forms: Leningrad-Paper-Wood-Construction-Supply-Distribution, 1988
Unique vintage photocollage with red linen, newspaper clippings, and gelatin silver print
Handmade by the artist, signed, dated on verso
19 1/2 x 15 1/2 in. (49.6 x 39.4 cm)
The Nailya Alexander Gallery shared “City of Shadows” and “Nomenklatura of Signs” at the 24th edition of Paris Photo. The collections are viewable online at the gallery’s website. Titarenko’s other work can be found at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, the Davis Museum at Wellesley College, the J. Paul Getty Museum in LA, the Museum of the City of New York and the Musée de l’Elysée in Switzerland, among many other venues.
