Jeff Wall

by Craig Burnett

Born in 1946 in British Colombia, Canada, Jeff Wall has shown internationally for the last twenty five years and is one of the most intriguing and influential artists working today. His signature works are large-scale narrative photographs in the form of backlit transparencies mounted in light-boxes in the manner of billboard advertisements. Rather than advertising products, Wall's photographs celebrate moments of everyday life, often ones he has observed while driving around the streets of his native Vancouver and then re-created, using actors. His use of the light-box as a medium has been copied by many younger artists and his theoretical writings on photography are widely admired. With their diverse references to film, literature and the history of art, Wall's photographs repay close study. Six key works are examined in depth in this survey, that includes rich material from new interviews with the artist and an overview of his career to date.

Genres: Photography

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Anders]

Odd. Good.

[Kelly]

Jeff Wall is perhaps my favorite living photographer. Inspired by the Old Masters and the illuminated advertisement, Wall shoots large scale photographs and then mounts them as transparencies in lightboxes. Wall uses the expression 'painter of modern life' to characterize his aims as an artist.