In Erwin Olaf - Strange Beauty , Dutch photographer Erwin Olaf creates a meticulously staged world for his photographs. The images appear to reflect the ordinary world, but their very artificiality gives them a mysterious significance.
The works, which draw on imagery from the film and advertising industries, seem perfect only on the surface; in fact, they address questions of democracy, equality, and self-determination.
This companion publication to Olaf’s first major solo exhibition in Germany brings together essential works and offers an engaging overview of his diverse body of work spanning the previous 40 years. It also includes Olaf’s most recent photographs at the time, some of which were created especially for the exhibition at Kunsthalle München.
Erwin Olaf (born 1959) studied at the school of journalism in Utrecht. He began his career photographing for magazines and trade publications, often on subjects with a sociopolitical dimension. Alongside his commercial work, he developed an extensive body of artistic work beginning in the 1980s. Olaf’s unconventional style quickly attracted international attention, and his work has been shown in exhibitions around the world.
In 2016, photographer Erwin Olaf created a series of photographs of Dutch National Ballet for the Groninger Museum. The series was inspired by the famous sculptures of Auguste Rodin. The museum acquired nine works from the series. Olaf also exhibited at Fotomuseum Den Haag, Hermitage Amsterdam, and the Chelsea Art Museum in New York.
Erwin Olaf - Strange Beauty
Pages: 240
Price: €43.29
Publisher: Hatje Cantz
Also read: Erwin Olaf - I Am
