About the Work
In this photograph, Schmidt depicts herself in a luscious bamboo forest with her back turned towards the viewer. Surrounded by tall trees, her tiny body looks as though it would get lost in the density of the forest, if not for the clearing in the distance. It, along with the bamboo stalks and Schmidt’s own body, recalls the triangular compositions and vanishing point perspective of classic works of Renaissance art.
The photograph is part of the Home Stills series, the entirety of which was published in a book by Jovis/DAP in 2011.
About the Artist
Adopting the persona of a “housewife” in her work, Bastienne Schmidt stages carefully domestic scenes that are set in her own living room or in public spaces such as laundromats. Schmidt’s work is influenced by the films of Wim Wenders, and the paintings and prints of Katsushika Hokusai, Sigmar Polke, Jan Vermeer, Cindy Sherman, and Edward Hopper. Photographed mostly in the Hamptons or on Long Island, Schmidt's work portrays the irony of a social contract in a world of suburban wonders.
Born in Germany, raised in Greece and Italy, and living in New York for the past 20 years, Schmidt has been shown nationally and internationally at over 50 exhibitions, including solo shows at the International Center of Photography in New York and The Museum für Kunst und Gewerbein in Hamburg, Germany. She has also published 4 monographs, among them Vivir la Muerte, American Dreams, Shadow Home—which was awarded the “Best Photo Book Prize” in Germany in 2005—and Home Stills, her latest monograph of drawings and photographs, published by Berlin-based Jovis in 2010. Home Stills, which accompanied one-person exhibitions at the Southeast Museum of Photography in Daytona Beach, FL and Harper’s Gallery in Easthampton, NY, depicts an ironic view on female gender roles.
Artspace Edition
Description
Color photograph made with archival pigments on fine art rag paper with glossy finish.Authentication
Includes a Certificate of Authenticity and an artist signed label on verso.Dimensions
This print contains a border as dictated by the artist to allow for framing and the quoted dimensions are for the paper size and not the printed size of the image itself.Shipping
Unframed works ship in 7–10 business days.Framed works ship in 10–14 business days.