FOAM TALENT 2022
The Feast, Inside, from the series Paintings, Dreams and Love © Yushi Li and Steph Wilson, courtesy of the artists.
Written by Max McKeon
Copyedited by Chloë Rain
Photo Edited by Yanting Chen
A photograph is a visual representation of time, a medium of preserving a single moment to be held still within an artist’s unique frame of reference.
Taking place from:
Foam Talent 2022
16 September 2022 – 18 January 2023
Foam Talent 2022 Frankfurt
16 February 2023 – 7 May 2023
FOAM Talent 2022 exhibits thought-provoking work from 20 emerging photographers, selected after 1,938 portfolio submissions from 85 countries, showcasing images that investigate challenges all of humanity faces living in our modern world. Dealing with overarching societal issues of climate change, discrimination, politics, spirituality, displacement, and social justice issues, FOAM allows viewers to ground their feelings and visualize them into a single fixed point. This collection of photographs illustrates the beauty of the human experience and the pain, as nothing is left unscathed moving through our modern life.
The FOAM Talent 2022 selected photographers are:
Marwan Bassiouni, Myriam Boulos, Olgaç Bozalp, Laura Chen, Kata Geibl, Lina Geoushy, Marvel Harris, Alexandra Rose Howland, Ange-Frédéric Koffi, Czar Kristoff, Yushi Li, Carla Liesching, Seif Kousmate, Pavo Marinović, Diego Moreno, Donja Nasseri, Ghazaleh Rezaei, Linn Phyllis Seeger, Ritsch Sisters, Donavon Smallwood.
Donavon Smallwood’s lyrical photography series Languor, explores home, nature, escape, and tranquility bound within this dreamy, sensual state of being. As if waking from a daydream, his black and white portrait of a black tattooed man calmly stares at you with thoughtfulness and reassurance that you are free from judgment in his eyes.
From the series Languor © Donavon Smallwood, courtesy of the artist.
There is a timeless quality to each of the displayed FOAM Talent works, yet each artist addresses the issues present in our modern times from different perspectives. The photography series Le Grand Voyage, The Great Travel, by Ange-Frédéric Koffi shows West African Marketplaces with a unique eye for the relationship that consumerism and branding play in even the most remote and traditional environments.
The structural relationship of religion within a family dynamic is explored in Diego Moreno’s work, where he grapples with the presence of the Catholic Church during his youth, and its influence on his ideas of self-identity, sexuality, and family. Taking old photographs of his family, or similar youthful figures, Moreno obscures his scenes with blurred oils and saturated drawings of satanic beings covering their identities.
Kata Geibl’s images from her series There is Nothing New Under the Sun, show us the poetic beauty of our shared world through powerful images of warm, vibrant hues displayed over landscapes and skin. Yet the viewer cannot help but notice the environmental impact humanity has on the landscape, erecting ladders over still mountain lakes, and slowly adjusting the natural world to the innumerable needs of humanity.
From the series Home: Leaving One for Another © Olgaç Bozalp, courtesy of the artist.
These photographs have been selected through the 15th edition of the FOAM Talent Call process, an international bi-annual search that gives talented emerging photographers under the age of 40 the opportunity to submit their portfolios. Allowing the selected artists the chance to gain international exposure and recognition within the photography industry.
In addition to being exhibited at FOAM Talent 2022, selected photographers will be included in FOAM Magazine’s #61: Talent issue, presented on Foam’s digital platform, and be a part of a traveling exhibition premiering at Foam. Furthermore, selected talents will participate in a mentorship program and various network activities, giving them the opportunity to have their work added to the prestigious Art Collection Deutsche Börse of the Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation.
Image from the series Inner Journey © Marvel Harris, courtesy of the artist.
From the series Malign Influences/The Holy Mountains © Diego Moreno, courtesy of the artist.
