The work of this photographer from Gaza offers a perception of reality in Palestine, one that differs greatly from the image of the country as it appears in the media.
Pères
“This work, begun in 2005, is part of a series that took shape during my travels to Palestine and Europe. These “photographic portraits” were taken in shops, cafes and factories in Gaza. The portraits are framed with the proprietor of the business (often its founder, who is now missing or, more rarely, the current owner) hanging on a wall behind the counter, taking pride of place on the shelves or concealed among piles of products and merchandise, depending on the store. It’s a series of “unconscious compositions” arranged by the owners of the establishments themselves.”
Playing on the ambiguity of representation, the series Watchtowers and GH0809 are on display here. The former series shows the watchtowers invading Palestinian territory, shot in the style of Bernd and Hilla Becher. Like the that German artist couple, who tried to document the post-industrial heritage of Europe in the 1950s, Taysir Batniji tried in 2008 to publish a typology of the watchtowers in the West Bank.
“I wanted to create the illusion, a sort of Trojan Horse,” he says. “The photographs were taken by another Palestinian photographer in highly dangerous conditions. (Because I was born in Gaza, I am not allowed in the West Bank.) They are blurry, shaky and awkwardly framed in poor lighting. There was no way to set up the kind of heavy equipment the Becher’s used and wait for days, no way to make them aesthetic, no way to view these functional military structures as sculptures or as a heritage.”
Troubles (Watchtowers / GH0809)
September 8 – November 10, 2012
LA BF15
11 quai de la Pêcherie
69001 Lyon
France
