With an eye for images that strike societies chord and an investigative gritty approach to journalism, for more than a decade, Taryn Simon’s work has shed light on some of the not so peachy parts of our world. In 2007 Simon’s project, “An American Index of the Hidden and Unfamiliar,” opened up the world to privatized scenes like a nuclear waste storage facilities which, if exposed, would kill a human in ten seconds, CIA headquarters and a cryonic facility housing the mother and wife of cryonics pioneer Robert Ettinger. For the first time in Russia, “Taryn Simon: Photographs and Texts” at the Multimedia Art Museum, a collection of Simon’s photos and writings, which have been featured in the New York Times Magazine, CNN, BBC and Frontline, are on display until Feb. 19.
Each photo the American journalist and artist takes presents a social commentary on things that we have seemingly forgotten. Among her subjects is a mentally retarded white tiger victimized by cross breeding, the victims of genocide in Bosnia and portraits of civilians in Cuba, Lebanon, Israel and Indonesia. Her most recent series, “A Living Man Declared Dead and Other Chapters” has been in the works since 2008. The friction between external power, territory and religion clash with the internal forces of psychological and physical existence resonates in this project. Subjects she documented in this series include feuding families in Brazil, the living dead in India and the body double of Saddam Hussein’s son Uday.
Other works on display are Simon’s “Contraband” in which she spent five days documenting confiscated items at New York’s JFK International Airport. One of the more unusual items she shot was a dried deer penis. Also, “The Innocents,” Simon’s collection of photographs and writings on people who serve time in prison for crimes they did not commit, will be on display. Like Haute Living Moscow? Join our Facebook page or follow us on Twitter @HauteLivingMag Want Haute Living Moscow delivered to your inbox once a week? Sign up for our newsletter. Source: The Moscow News/ Art Forum/ Taryn Simon
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