Jeff Wall's large-scale lightboxes are on view at the Art Institute of Chicago through September 23rd. Inspired by backlit bus station advertisements, the artist mounts photo transparencies onto aluminum boxes lit from within. Measuring an average of 6 x 8 feet, the artworks fill the museum galleries with a cinematic glow.
Wall creates complex stages for his photographs, like the above image titled After Invisible Man (1999-2000). The image recreates a scene from Ralph Ellison's famous novel: "I sat on the chair's edge in a soaking sweat, as though each of my 1,369 bulbs had every one become a klieg light..."
A full-color catalogue is available at the Museum Store, and the AIC website lists a series of special events held in conjunction with the show.
A view from an apartment, 2004-05
A Sudden Gust of Wind (After Hokusai), 1993
Milk, 1984
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
Nice, but duratrans exhibits have been around for years. As someone who's been a serious photographer for 20 years, these seem too mundane to be worthy of an exhibit, not to mention one with the stunning potential of a well executed duratrans presentation. But that's just my two cents.
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Well I saw this expo at MoMA last Spring and I liked it a lot, so YMMV.
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