Something you should see… Laura Letinsky’s Ill Form and Void Full at The Photographers’ Gallery

Laura Letinsky concerns herself with perfecting the still life photograph, using 17th Century Renaissance painting as her reference point. In so doing she has begun to consider the artificiality of what is being presented, or rather, represented. With this as a starting point, a dinner party  tarts to become a stage managed affair when it is recorded, and you may find that the table, or the food, or the spilled wine will not actually be any of those things at all when you come to recall the evening.

Using representations of the subject matter (including cuts outs from magazines and models instead of the actual thing) Letinsky is concerned with the human condition through our experiences. Yet you won’t see yourself in the images. And this is very much a theme of Letinsky’s work – the remnants of our existence, with an absence of any human depiction save what has been enjoyed. So were we there? Is it real? Why not come and see your detritus made beautiful and after you’ve had that second glass of wine, maybe you can start to answer these questions. (Words: Ed Spencer) 

Ill Form and Void Full is on from Jan 18 – April 7. For more info visit:  http://thephotographersgallery.org.uk/laura-letinsky-ill-form-and-void-full