Pou, Lisa, et Angèle sur leur rocher, Cévennes, 2020
Inkjet print
Edition 1 of 5
30 x 26 cm
Pou, Lisa, et Angèle sur leur rocher depicts three figures merged into a single, alien form, creating a formal interplay of light and shadow. Light washes over and through the figures, resembling a plume of smoke that both conceals and reveals their gestures and poses. The flattened and stark composition enhances the picture's mystique and eeriness, suggesting a unique planetary moment. Elements such as the sun and moon during an eclipse may contribute to the strange effects of light. The figures, arranged in a logical sequence, appear to be telepathically connected, creating a predatory moment of observation into a void.
Paradoxical state in centipede formation: The three figures, arranged sequentially in a convergent formation, exhibit a chimeric morphology reminiscent of a centipede. This configuration suggests a paradoxical state of vulnerability and predatory potential. The figures' posture and alignment evoke a hunting stance, akin to a centipede targeting its prey.
Predatory potential of the nocturnal figure(s): Dramatic shadow and focused illumination create an auditory environment characterised by heightened acoustic sensitivity. The figures' hunched posture, resembling bat wings, results in a corporeal coalescence that evokes the menacing morphology of a carnivorous centipede. The figures' vigilant observation of the distant horizon, coupled with a poised, predatory stance, suggests a latent threat emerging from the darkness. This spectral presence, analogous to vampires during a momentary pause in their predatory activities, underscores the inherent danger lurking within the depicted scene.
Unified form in sequential order: A hierarchical arrangement of figures, defined by decreasing complexity, is observed. The leftmost figure exhibits the most intricate pose, distinguished by a folded arm and a hand placed on the bicep. The central figure, positioned in the foreground, presents a simpler configuration with only one folded arm. In contrast, the third figure, located atop the slope, demonstrates a complete absence of folded arms, with the lower extremities obscured by shadow. This sequential reduction in complexity constructs a unified form, with the figures arranged in a logical order that contrasts with the enigmatic and otherworldly atmosphere of the scene.
Planetary temporal indeterminacy: The temporal indeterminacy of the composition is underscored by its unique planetary context. The absence of a specific temporal reference point, coupled with a celestial event involving the sun or moon, suggests a singular and transitory phenomenon. The figures' gesture of shielding their eyes from the intense light reinforces the harsh and exceptional nature of this illumination. This once-in-a-lifetime lighting condition, in conjunction with the distinctive compositional elements, contributes to a state of temporal suspension.
Micro-utopian experiment of a liminal communitas: Lea Lerma's work depicts two friends participating in a micro-utopian experiment initiated during the second COVID-19 lockdown. This experiment explored alternative social and physical constructs within a derelict urban structure and later extended into the wilderness. The group, reminiscent of Turner's "communitas," exists within a "liminal space" (Turner, 1995)1 defined by suspended societal norms and temporal ambiguity. The group's gestures, movements, interactions, and clothing contribute to this ambiguity. While the group's experiment initially represented idealism, Lerma's work contrasts this by portraying the harsh realities of life in these environments, which are physically more dangerous and bear the mental pressures of urban life.
Free, fearless, uncontrolled and unsafe: Lerma's communitas, unlike alternative subcultural "safe spaces," prioritises openness and risk over safety. This "unsafe" space facilitates greater freedom, potentially including the risk of mortality. Activities such as hanging around cliff edges like here in the wilderness, with no access to emergency services or basic necessities, exemplify this extreme openness.
Notes:
1 Turner, Victor. The Ritual Process. 1995.
Exhibition provenance:
London, Copeland Gallery, After the Waiting Room, 2022.
Marseille, Atelier de Serviere, Orties, 2023.
Frame: Unframed
Ships from the United Kingdom
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Close Considerations
Paradoxical juxtaposition of light and shadow: The interplay of light and shadow on the figures, creating a chiaroscuro effect, accentuates their sculptural quality. Lerma’s surrealist manipulation of light and darkness paradoxically highlights the phosphorescent luminosity of the figures as they advance towards the viewer, seemingly emanating from darkness itself. This surrealist technique engenders temporal ambiguity.
Progress in time through light and space: The composition’s meaning unfolds through an internal progression, transitioning from an undifferentiated, blurred background to a starkly illuminated climax. This progression, indicated by intensified light, colour saturation, and materiality, leads the viewer from obscurity to clarity, revealing the underlying meaning.
Intensified precarity through perceptual flattening: The figures, perched precariously on a sloping rock, shielding their eyes from light, suggests a natural habitat of darkness. The limited illumination, reminiscent of outer space, adds to the disorienting eeriness. The restricted colour palette flattens the landscape, along with the central figure's black hair, merging with the background, intensifying the figures' precarity.
Diagonal smearing: The scene is marked by a stark, angular composition featuring figures positioned on a sloping rock at a 45-degree angle, mirrored by the folded arms of two figures. The foreground figure, positioned closer to the viewer, forms a triangular configuration with the other two, systematically aligned along a perfect diagonal axis. This meticulous arrangement creates a visual effect of elements being smeared towards the top right.
Implied audience within relational space: Lerma's compositional strategies transform her images into relational spaces that involve the viewer. The depicted subject/s, whose identities remain obscured, acknowledge Lerma's presence through a partial body orientation. This angled positioning, combined with the vacant area for Lerma's perspective, emphasises the empty space filled by the viewer and their psychological impulses.
Discontinuities, asymmetries, and open frames: Lerma's breaks the focus by using discontinuities, asymmetries, and open frames enriching this scene by disrupting its visual harmony and preventing rigidity. John Slyce (2000) notes, "The frame sets limits while offering a tangible means of escape."1 Lerma achieves this through cropped sections, leading lines extending beyond the frame, figures interacting with off-frame elements, and awkward props.
Notes:
1 Slyce, John. On Time, Performative Realism: The Photographs of Sarah Jones, Museum Folkwang, 2000.
Process
Pre-emptive intuitional composing: Lerma's process involves anticipating and capturing spontaneous configurations among her friends in various spaces, employing intuitive pre-emption to preserve the moment's energy and mystique. She utilises specific camera settings, such as a wide aperture and slow shutter speed, to capture details in dimly lit spaces, contributing to the mood and emotional depth. She strategically positions herself or awaits the ideal light or for her subjects to assume particular poses or interactions, balancing spontaneity with a clear intention regarding the desired capture, resulting in organic yet meticulously crafted compositions.
Unprivileged view: Lerma's compositions align with Tillmans' notion of the "unprivileged view" (Godfrey, 2017),1where the artist's presence minimally influences the scene. Subjects often remain oblivious to Lerma, creating an atmosphere that "provokes a feeling of not mattering rather than command" (Ibid.),2 enabling the viewer to engage with the scene without undue artist interference.
Embedded ethnography: Lerma assumes the role of a "documentary observer," employing a systematic process of observation to allow the landscape to reveal itself without imposition, as articulated by hooks (1997).3 From within the communitas, Lerma offers a literal perspective aligned with Turner's concept of “heroic time,” rendering her an effective anthropologist of her own culture (Turner, 1985).4 Her ethos mirrors the communitas' values, characterised by a spontaneous and immediate approach to relationships. Subjects within the communitas retain the autonomy to approve or withdraw consent for the use of their photographs.
Process as political action: Rancière's (1999)5 framework on the “aesthetics of politics” posits that art transforms into political activity by disrupting the established symbolic order through the exposure of previously invisible elements. Lerma's practice, while intertwined with her political life, differs from photojournalism, which presents events as mere records or spectacles. Conversely, Lerma captures "the image of the photographic rhetoric that is purported to capture the event" (Guerra, 2006),6 offering a comprehensive understanding of the group's actions and underlying processes.
Disconnected instants and implicit intertextuality: Lerma's works, presented in artist books with variable image sequences, allow each work to be viewed within diverse contexts. This lack of a fixed sequence creates a dynamic constellation of "disconnected instants" (Berger & Bohr, 1982),7 where juxtaposition generates echoes, contrasts, and recurrences, forming "implicit intertextuality" (Ricœur, 1984).8 While the book format provides a meta-continuation, Lerma's practice of altering the sequence ensures each picture's autonomy, reinforcing its individual sovereignty.
Iterative composing and tautological reinforcement: Lerma's iterative compositional process generates multiple variants to elucidate the core structure and select the most impactful representation. This tautological approach reinforces the compositional elements' conjunction and interrelationships, as Allison Smith (1998)9 asserts. Despite facial anonymity, Lerma offers hints about her subjects' identities through body language and poses across different tautological contexts, facilitating viewer interpretation of actions and interactions, and engendering a viewer-subject relationship.
Notes:
1 Godfrey, Mark. Worldview. In Wolfgang Tillmans 2017, edited by Chris Dercon, Helen Sainsbury, and Wolfgang Tillmans, Tate, 2017, pp.14-76.
2 Ibid.
3 hooks, bell. “Between Us: Traces of Love—Dickinson, Horn, Hooks.” In Earths Grow Thick, Wexner Center for the Arts, 1997.
4 Turner, Victor. On the Edge of the Bush. 1985.
5 Rancière, Jacques. Disagreement: Politics and Philosophy. University of Minnesota Press, 1999.
6 Guerra, Carles. Notre Histoire, Catalogue of the Exhibition. Paris: Palais de Tokyo, 2006.
7 Berger, John, and Jean Bohr. Another Way of Telling: A Possible Theory of Photography. Bloomsbury, 1982.
8 Ricœur, Paul. Time and Narrative. Translated by Kathleen McLaughlin and David Pellauer, University of Chicago Press, 1984.
9 Smith, Allison. Agnes Varda. Manchester University Press, 1998.
References
Religious undercurrent: Lerma's underlying metaphysical aesthetic can be contextualised within the framework of Leonardo da Vinci's The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne (1501-1519). This painting, a pioneering work in Italian art, marked the first instance of the Virgin, Saint Anne, and the infant Christ being depicted together. Elements of this composition are evident in Lerma's work, as the figures are merged into a pyramidal configuration, suggesting an upward trajectory pointing to the heavens. (Image: Leonardo da Vinci's The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne (1501-1519))
Vinca Petersen: Lea Lerma's reference to Vinca Petersen, the artist and former nomadic squat dweller, highlights their shared experiences. While Petersen's group embraced rave and party culture, Lerma's resonance aligns more closely with Petersen's depictions of interpersonal connection and natural landscapes, capturing moments of ecopsychological euphoria.
Goya’s progression of time through light and space: Goya's Third of May unfolds temporally and spatially within the pictorial field. The narrative progresses from an undifferentiated background, describing the 'before,' to a climactic, light-revealed execution scene, representing the 'now,' and concludes with fallen figures at the pictorial boundary, signifying the 'afterwards.' This temporal progression is boosted by light intensity, colour saturation, and materiality, as noted by Nochlin (1985).1
Surrealism: Similar to the problematic light effects in the works of Delvaux, De Chirico, Ernst, Dali, Tanguy, and Miró, Lerma's work features an unknowable light source that bathes the figures in unnatural scenes that appear staged or digitally manipulated. The forest setting, devoid of any discernible light source, is illuminated by both hard and soft light, casting ominously thick black shadows from architectural elements. This juxtaposition of light and darkness creates a menacing atmosphere.
Andrei Tarkovsky's Landscapes: Tarkovsky's portrayal of humanity in a state of loss within natural landscapes is recalled in Lerma's work, which, through her community's actions, evokes a similar sense of being enveloped by expansive and immersive scenes. Lerma's compositional structures echo Tarkovsky's landscape aesthetics. (Image: Tarkovsky’s still from Nostalgia)
Caspar David Friedrich’s romanticism: Friedrich Schleiermacher, a contemporary of Caspar Friedrich (whom Lerma cites as an influence), redefined religion as an internal, instinctual experience, departing from doctrinal interpretations (Butin, 2014).2 While Friedrich's and Lerma's works depict nature, this particular picture of Lerma’s subverts the traditional hope of transcendental possibilities. Instead, it presents a state of oblivion, akin to imminent psychological death and complete disillusionment, yet replete with potential dopamine and serotonin effects.
Clement Cogitore's Work: Cogitore, another reference point of Lerma’s, explores themes of irrationality, archaic schemas, primitivism, sacred survival, magic's infiltration into a world losing faith in transcendence, and apocalyptic figures. Ancient forms are recontextualised through contemporary image perception, where technology and the internet have replaced magic, yet the unconscious remains in pursuit of belief (Vergne, 2018).3
Fairytales: Lerma's visual narrative draws from historic fairytales, featuring ordinary protagonists immersed in fantastical realms (Swann Jones, 2013).4 Like Red Riding Hood and Snow White, Lerma's protagonists are young adults transitioning into adulthood, venturing into uncharted territories (Lüthi, 1976)5 and defining themselves (Flores, 1996).6Fantastical elements in Lerma's work facilitate suspension of disbelief (Vasudeven, 2017).7 The depicted moments remain authentic, subtly altered by Lerma's presence, perspective, and technique, creating a captivating dissonance in the fantastical scenes grounded in reality.
Sarah Jones and Dutch-Flemish Painting: Lerma's works, including this one, often exhibit structural configurations similar to Jones's pictures and Dutch-Flemish painting. Figures appear deeply engrossed, while settings pulsate with subtle significance (Higgie, 2000).8 A system of micro-signs forms a psychological narrative, with hints found in hand and foot positioning (Troncy, 2000).9 Lerma's brilliance lies in the silent interplay of places, objects, and people, which convey the intensity of a Greek drama (Higgie, 2000).10
Rembrandt, Caravaggio and Vermeer: Lerma's work resonates more with Rembrandt than Caravaggio or Vermeer, all of whom she mentions in discussing her practice. Her figures though caught in chiaroscuro-like moments and in quiet poses of Vermeer, exhibit Rembrandt’s quality of calm yet bold receptivity and a sense of awe towards the potential for transcendence within the ordinary. The evanescent light on the figures, sometimes subtle and other times radiant, imbues them with a mystical connection. (Image: Rembrandt, The Night Watch, 1642)
Nan Goldin: Lerma's work is influenced by Nan Goldin's exploration of intimate relationships, capturing moments of isolation, self-revelation, and adoration (Sussman, 1996).11 However, Lerma's approach differs from Goldin's photojournalistic snapshots, as Lerma's work is meticulously composed through pre-emption and tautology, resulting in a unique, rigorous, and more metaphysical visual language.
Notes:
1 Nochlin, Linda. Realism. Penguin Books, 1985.
2 Butin, Hubertus. Gerhard Richter’s Editions and The Discourses of Images. In Gerhard Richter Editions 1965–2013, edited by Hubertus Butin, Stefan Gronert, and Thomas Olbricht. Hanje Cantz, 2014.
3 Vergne, Jean-Charles, and Clement Cogitore. Le Prix Marcel Duchamp. SilvaneEditoriale, 2018.
4 Swann Jones, Steven. The Fairy Tale: The Magic Mirror of the Imagination. 1995.
5 Lüthi, Max. Once Upon a Time: On the Nature of Fairy Tales. F. Ungar Pub. Co,1976.
6 Flores, Nona C. Animals in the Middle Ages: The Book of Essays. 1996.
7 Vasudeven, Alexander. “Reassembling the City: Makeshift Urbanisms and the Politics of Squatting in Berlin.” The Autonomous City: A History of Urban Squatting. Verso, 2017.
8 Higgie, Jennifer. Sarah Jones. Le Consortium, 2000.
9 Troncy, Eric. Sarah Jones. Le Consortium, 2000.
10 Ibid (8)
11 Sussman, Elisabeth. Nan Goldin: I’ll be Your Mirror. Whitney Museum of American Art, 1996.