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Saturday 12 May 2012

Book reviews

So recently, I have picked up a few new books, so naturally I thought I would put a review of them on my blog.

 

My personal favorite is The Clearing by Ori Gersht. This elegant, beautifully illustrated publication presents three ambitious series of works. The forest has been seen traditionally as a dark place, and a place of dark deeds, and this is certainly true of the area surrounding Kolomyia, in Ukraine, where these works were made. It was here that appalling atrocities were perpetrated by the Nazis and Ukrainian collaborators upon the local Jewish population, Gersht's, father, father-in-law, and brother amongst them. It is in this personal connection that can be found the genesis of this work, a meditation upon memory and meaning. This book with an essay by Jeremy Millar, explores the representation of history and catastrophe in photography, film and literature, and the possibility or impossibility of bearing witness to such events.You could find yourself staring at these photographs for hours on end, reflecting and developing your own interpretations of the works. It is certainly easy to find yourself lost within the pages.

Published by Film and Video Umbrella, in association with CRG Gallery, New York, Angles Gallery, Los Angeles, Noga Gallery, Tel Aviv and Andrew Mummery Gallery, London. With additional support from University College for the Arts at Canterbury, Epsom, Farnham, Maidstone and Rochester.

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