Italian artist visits Istanbul for show
ISTANBUL-Hürriyet Daily News
Italian artist Claudio Orlandi has recently been in Turkey to attend his solo exhibition at Gallery Espas. Orlandi spoke about his art, his latest inspirations and why Turkish collectors love his photographs.
Orlandi is considered one of the most successful photographers in the world, and he is certainly one of the best known photographers among Turkish collectors. What is particularly unique and magical in his photographs is the illusional technique that he uses, as he seeks to reflect his photographic images in a way that no one has seen before. Orlandi’s art seeks to create a new way of understanding in terms of visions and images.
He has visited Turkey many times before, attending several shows in a number of different cities. In the 2009 TUYAP show, he showcased four pieces titled “Porno Dreams.” “It was a series, and a collector bought all four of them,” Orlandi said during an interview with Hürriyet Daily News.
Orlandi’s current exhibition at Gallery Espas at Istanbul’s Nişantaşı district reveals a new era of photography. “There are images, but when you look at them you may not understand what you are really looking at,” said Orlandi. He visited Istanbul for the opening reception of the gallery.
Born in Rome in 1960, Orlandi said he has always loved photography. “It was a hobby at first. However, in time, photography became a passion for me.”
He likes to reflect images in a poetic way, and as his style has matured he has clearly developed in his poetic view a tendency towards the transformation of reality, and a very personal interpretation of his vision.
Colors are the most important aspect of Orlandi’s photographs. Color predominates in his work: strong, definite, surreal, beguiling color. His color indicates mutation and transformation, bordering on the imaginary and the impossible.
Sometimes the figures in Orlandi’s photographs give a sense of movement to the viewer. This deception may be the main focus in his images. According to Orlandi, it might be wrong to think of his works as simple photographs or snapshots. The buildings, the figures of women and the gathered bunches of rubbish he features always tell a different story.
The perception of the image always changes in Orlandi’s works. In his works the viewer cannot realize if he or she is looking at the truth or not. The artist chooses whether or not to reflect reality.
Latest series
In the series currently on display at Gallery Espas, Orlandi chooses to isolate his subjects with a black background, attempting to depict the isolation of objects in the world.
In these terms, truth becomes bottlenecked, and once again the photographer leaves it to the viewer to figure it out. His work, which depicts a bunch of metal, reflects the consuming society of the everyday world. In his photographs, Orlandi seeks to criticize society and the system.