The Swiss photographer Christian Tagliavini has been working on a new series entitled 1406 for more than three years. He combines the art of the fifteenth century and the Italian Quattrocento with contemporary photographic art. In a long process, Christian Tagliavini creates poignant portraits within which the dignity, grace and power at the beginning of the Renaissance are revisited. The series’ title is a reference to the Italian painter Filippo Lippi (1406-1469), one of the most important artists at the beginning of the Renaissance. Christian Tagliavini quotes here the history of art in his own way. He tries to pay homage to the period in a work, but without copying it. He reinterprets the aesthetic characteristics and the iconography of the time and combines them with fantasy ideas. So the works have a very contemporary style. Christian Tagliavini devises the sumptuous clothes himself, makes all of the objects in the image himself, all of the ornaments from the smallest to the most elaborate. Even the hats are the fruits of an expert’s labour. He also uses historic material from the fifteenth century for the dresses. On average, Christian Tagliavini invests two or three months on one portrait.
Christian Tagliavini, 1406
From 9th December 2017 to 24th February 2018
Camera Work
Kantstraße 149
10623 Berlin
Germany
