Written by Michelle O'Malley

Edited by Parker Renick

Danish photographer Tine Bek’s book, “The Vulgarity of Being Three-Dimensional,” confronts viewers in a manner that is both unapologetic and thought-provoking. Straying far from traditional sculptural art, Bek offers us a whimsical, fresh take on the artistic process behind her photography and the human perception of structure. Containing 150 color plates, every page serves as a unique piece in a complex puzzle, leaving viewers wanting more images to answer the questions created by their wandering thoughts.

Candle wax melting all over a table, rotting fruit being cut up, chocolate spilling from a fountain, a slice of cheese with cut marks all astray, and stacks of books placed on a couch are just a handful of examples of the objects focused upon within this book. Though these images may seem random at first glance, Bek tactfully places these images in a way that stirs vulgar feelings of disgust followed by a sense of wonderment. There is simply something so “wrong” with candle wax melting so freely over a surface, the original candlestick shape being destroyed in this barbaric process. Yet, as viewers take a moment to reflect on these uncomfortable feelings, there comes a question as to why this “readjustment” or release of structure instinctually invokes a disgusted response in us. Is this feeling that three-dimensional figures must be constantly upheld instinctive, or merely what structured society has ingrained in us?

A prelude, Spooky Sculpture by James McCann, notes Walter Benjamin’s, The Origin of German Tragic Drama as a key reference in his understanding and conceptualization of the art-making process and relates this back to Bek’s work with “overflowing” structures. McCann explains further that “The terminology Benjamin uses is the ‘constellational image’ the image that exists as a totality, while simultaneously remaining its constituent parts.” Maybe this “constellational image” is what Bek is attempting to convey through his depictions of objects’ materials “leaking out” of their perspective forms, the “constituent parts” being highlighted for once.

As viewers dive deeper and deeper into Bek’s photographic journey, a pattern both unfolds and recoils as we attempt to make meaning of our reactions, only to leave us in a perpetual state of question. Though a concrete translation of the images may seem desirable in these moments, it just might be that this continual sensation of questions left unanswered is precisely what Bek aims to inspire in viewers.

The concluding text, The subtle Condition of the Baroque by Michael Mersinis, relates Bek’s series of fabric, food, and material images to the Baroque style of art, not because of the objects being photographed, but because of the sensations of desire for more of the objects themselves. Mersinis reasons that “Every image can hardly be accused of embellishment. Yet in their entirety all images subtly accumulate to a sense of overfilling with awe that comes like satiation overflown.” Therefore, Bek’s images are Baroque in the sense of the specific impacts they have on viewers.

The Vulgarity of Being Three-Dimensional was published on February 26, 2022, by Disko Bay and printed in Denmark by Narayana Press. The esteemed art photography platform, the Hasselblad Foundation, awarded the book Photo Book Grant 2021. Signed copies are available while the stock lasts on the Disko Bay website.