Sine Van Menxel – A table under a tree

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A table under a tree by Sine Van Menxel
Sine Van Menxel's A table under a tree, taking images without the use of a camera.

In the artist’s publication A table under a tree by Sine Van Menxel, an imaginary table moment is photographically captured using photograms. Glass plates in the shape of spoons and plates were placed blindly on the photo paper in the dark room and then exposed. These images were taken without the use of a camera, and yet they exhibit photographic characteristics such as depth, movement, foreground and background, zooming in and out. In this work, analog photography shows itself as an anachronistic medium that is extremely suitable for the search for alternative possibilities to depict life.

In de kunstenaarspublicatie A table under a tree wordt een imaginair tafelmoment fotografisch vastgelegd aan de hand van fotogrammen. Glasplaten in de vorm van lepels en borden werden in de donkere kamer blindelings op het fotopapier gelegd en vervolgens belicht. Deze beelden werden gemaakt zonder het gebruik van een fototoestel, en toch vertonen ze fotografische kenmerken als diepte, beweging, voor- en achtergrond, in- en uitzoomen. Analoge fotografie toont zich in dit werk als een anachronistisch medium dat uitermate geschikt is voor het zoeken naar alternatieve mogelijkheden om het leven te verbeelden.

Nominated for the Prix Bob Calle du livre d’artiste 2025

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Sine Van Menxel’s oeuvre exclusively comprises analogue photography. More so, this medium functions for her not only as a technique but also as a subject. Her work results from her experimental attitude behind the camera and in the darkroom. For Van Menxel, as for many photographers, the core of photography lies in manipulating light and shadow. Although she pushes this a lot further. So much so that the significance of her work lies more in the visual possibilities her alternative approach to photographic technique opens up than in the subjects she photographs.

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Specifications

hardcover
48 pages
26,2 x 37 cm
750g
Language: English

Published in May 2024
ISBN: 9789464002379

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