JESPER HELBO
UNEARTHED
UNEARTHED Unearthed is about uncovering the hidden potential in the world around us. By using the camera as a microscope (macro lens) you begin to see things you didn’t know existed beforehand. You uncover visual manifestations of various objects, “inner life”, if you will. This is interesting on many different levels. For example, similar patterns begin to emerge from within completely different materials, revealing that in the world of the very small, movements and structures begin to assimilate to each other. This idea fascinates me. While from a biological and chemical standpoint, everything is built from the same molecular building blocks. I feel that is why I as a human being, made from exactly the same resources, feel deeply connected to this process. Furthermore, time, as a transformative force is also very present in the work. All things, animate or inanimate, undergo different stages of presence or vibrancy of life. Everything is in an everlasting state of flux and change and I want my photographic images to offer a way to capture this transformation of matter, albeit in a very fleeting way. As referred to by the title Unearthed, I feel that the work also is connected to the metaphorical idea of “digging up” something from the soil and revealing it. In a way, I feel like the mad scientist searching high and low for the next clue or piece of evidence to prove his theory. In this case, however, there is no thesis, just a desire to delve into the unbounded visual potential of all that is us. Jesper Helbo, Copenhagen 2015
JESPER HELBO - UNEARTHED The crow on the crematorium chimney And the camera roving the battle Record a space where time has no place. ( W.H. Auden )
`UNEARTHED´ is the second major consolidated series of photographic works to be launched on an unsuspecting public by the photographer Jesper Helbo. The series itself has been divided into four visual chapters each with their own title, TINGE/SPLIT/MATTER/SCULPTED. The overall appearance of the series is of a selection of images that are taken from everyday life, sculpted debris, passing and found objects that have all been forensically scrutinised, recorded and catalogued, in order to construct an armature that will allow for an abstracted visual conversion of the original material into a photographic language. The crux of the making of this series hinges upon a flexible set of visual rules and cerebral innovations that aim in great part to surprise the photographer himself and are driven by the striving ambition of wanting to achieve unexpected results with the least amount of technical intervention. The results are also duly arrived at by what we could refer to as the engineering of `the happy accident´. This can take the form of a preconceived working mode that is established by a particular `mindset´, or by premeditated ideas that are conjured as a conclusion of entering the realm of sublimated daydreaming. This wholehearted activity contributes to a working process that instigates a method and a tone of adventure that deems itself worthy of four descriptive working phases; the hunt / the capture / the defining / the selecting. What we are also presented with this new body of work is a distinctive step forward from the previous series of work, namely `THE VOID´, JH has taken the decision to pursue and realise this new and present body of work using a mixture of both colour and black and white images. Another observation of note that is worth mentioning and one that I am aware of through direct conversation is the expansion of JH´s visual references that has taken on board the feisty world of the fine arts, specifically those of painting. The world of painting has constantly proved to be a fertile greenhouse of visual thinking, a principal player feeding kaleidoscopic shifts of visual evolution. These evolutionary shifts have been enhanced by participants from all corners of the creative sphere. Our contemporary civilization has been shaped and formed by various individuals of note who have taken it upon themselves to prosecute the idiom that the status quo should not grind to a lethargic standstill but should be constantly challenged both as an individual and a social enterprise in order to effect progress, innovative thinking, and bring into effect a constant rewrite of the visual dictionary.
I would like to refer back to the earlier phrase `the happy accident´ whilst making a direct reference to the image entitled `Tempest´ that falls under the titled heading `MATTER´. It can be said, that it sometimes happens by chance, that within the aim of striving for a creative forward motion, a happy accident or the coming together at the same given time of a number of a contributory fortuitous elements happen when you least expect it but when you most need it. The real talent needed is recognising that such an opportune event is in the making, and possessing the necessary foresight and courage to seize that moment. The `Tempest´ image falls under such a heading. It is a protogenic image, the instigator as it were for all the consequential images that contribute to this new series of photographs by Jesper Helbo. Again I can state from first hand discussion that the allusion to specific paintings and painters and the potential there of, came about in a forensic dialogue regarding the Tempest image, the manner of its execution and its intriguing results. The proponent material used in the image can be attributed to my earlier reference of the `hunt´ and `capture´ phase of the creative process. JH also refers to the proponent material quality of being an important issue by placing the image into a category of his own making entitled `MATTER´. The post mortem dialogue ensued with reference to the landscapes, especially the renowned storm scenes of JMW Turner along with the earthy palette tones that constitute a majority of Rembrandt paintings. This all becomes food for thought, a seismic jolt that sets in motion a chain reaction of material, appearance, emotion and the application of subjective poetical language. It is the ongoing dilemma of a contemporary photographer as to how exactly one can conjure a workable approach in the making of images that stimulate, possess integrity and push the boundaries of visual expectations. Hard work is without any doubt a major part of the solution, along with a plentiful dose of courage. The courage element is tied in with vision, and the vision is the aforementioned daydream element which is an absolute prerequisite in the search for an articulate personal language. I would not say that JH got lucky when he created a the `Tempest´ image, as that would only serve to demerit from what I would view as its iconic value and its status as an absolute game changer in the photographic oeuvre of JH. He did however possess the necessary objective vision to coerce a chance series of events into a subjective manifestation. It is fortunate, or rather we are all fortunate that `Tempest´ became the catalyst that has resulted in providing JH with a `born again´ motivation to pursue with a reinvigorated approach the making of photographs that are supported by a retinue of poetical ammunition. There is an apparent manifestation of the fine art of painting that is evident throughout this new body of work. I could easily take a large proportion of the images that have been produced and subscribe them to a tidy bunch of painters of merit to stand alongside specific chosen images. This in the main is a direct visual response to the resonating tacticity of the surfaces of the different images, of which it has to be stated, that they are very varied while remaining homogenous as a series.
As an example let me playfully match some titled images alongside names of painters that I feel are wholeheartedly complementary; Tempest - JWM Turner / Rim - Anselm Kiefer / Screen - Sean Scully / Wreckage - John Chamberlain / Submerged II - Frank Auerbach. This does not in any way open itself to the question of legitimate sourcing, one should look for inspiration wherever one can. Whatever it takes to kick start the cerebral motivation and the necessary enthusiasm for the hunt, the capture, the defining and the selecting, is all fair game in the pursuit of a firmly anchored visual statement.
iIi
To my mind, there is no escaping the `gut reaction´ to a single image or an entire body of work. I do not concede that this reaction is wholly in opposition to a more hard line objective intellectual rationality, rather a matter of personality and its inherent differences. To quote Popeye; “I yam what I yam� and so should the photographer also strive to be. This new series of work by Jesper Helbo, a photographer who has now most definitely departed the creche of young photographers, has clearly demonstrated with this new body of work a clear intent upon leaving his personal creative mark on the long road to perdition. His struggles are clearly our gain, the results of which can be judged to have taken a quantum leap forward, not without risk, but courage favours the brave hearted and his due reward is that he has created an authentic visual platform upon which he can launch a career of longevity with the passage of time used wisely to the benefit of us all. Galvin Harrison 2015
UNEARTHED
Part 1.
TINGE
SCREEN
SURGE
DEEP RED
THE WINDOW
MIASMA
SUBMERGED I
SUBMERGED II
FLICKER
VEIL
Part 2.
SPLIT
HEAVE
STRIDENT
HILLSIDE
CHART
THE RIVER
Part 3.
MATTER
ASHEN
CREST
FADE
RIM
TEMPEST
Part 4.
SCULPTED
RADIATE
WRECKAGE
INTERSECT
ICON
UNEARTHED
2015
Chief Curator Joint Curator Joint Curator
Galvin Harrison Paolo Sturiale Robert Klun
Text + Graphic Proof + edit
Galvin Harrison Sandy Thornland
Sturiale Contemporary Arts
:
Venice / Ljubljana / Abu Dhabi
http://sturiale.it/ http://sturialeprojects.tumblr.com/ All images are the sole copyright of Jesper Helbo courtesy of Sturiale Contemporary Arts 2015