honorable mention
Gemma Pepper switzerlandPhoto © gemma pepper
title
Ruby and her Sister
For nearly 60 years this carte-de-visite, dated on the back in 1903, lay in a beautifully conserved photography album from the early 20th century. The photograph, depicts two young women wearing the exact same garments and jewelry, was taken in a photography studio in Basel, Switzerland.
As relayed by the son of the original owner, the photo album was barely looked at during his lifetime. After acquiring this beautiful album, the artist realized the potential in the specific carte-de-visite and appropriated the found photograph by adding physical objects creating a new image with a new identity. The work thus allows new emotions and perspectives to emerge, which can be interpreted differently by each individual.
In her work practice, she seeks to suspend and transcend time and space, always searching for the connection between the past and the present. Further she explores the meaning of nostalgia and memory photographs as aesthetic objects and cultural artifacts. Accordingly, the following questions are always central to her work. What does a photograph do? What ideas and visions of the world's future can photographs reproduce by recontextualizing them into something new?
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entry description
For nearly 60 years this carte-de-visite, dated on the back in 1903, lay in a beautifully conserved photography album from the early 20th century. The photograph, depicts two young women wearing the exact same garments and jewelry, was taken in a photography studio in Basel, Switzerland.
As relayed by the son of the original owner, the photo album was barely looked at during his lifetime. After acquiring this beautiful album, the artist realized the potential in the specific carte-de-visite and appropriated the found photograph by adding physical objects creating a new image with a new identity. The work thus allows new emotions and perspectives to emerge, which can be interpreted differently by each individual.
about the photographer
Gemma Pepper is a British artist and photographer living in Switzerland. She studied photography at Llandrillo College, Rhos-on-Sea, North Wales, Great Britain and at the University of Derby, England, Great Britain. She also graduated with a Master of Arts ZFH in Art Education, with a Specialization in Curatorial Studies at the Zurich University of the Arts, Switzerland in 2021. Her analogue collages and fine art photographs have been presented and published internationally and are held in private and public collections.In her work practice, she seeks to suspend and transcend time and space, always searching for the connection between the past and the present. Further she explores the meaning of nostalgia and memory photographs as aesthetic objects and cultural artifacts. Accordingly, the following questions are always central to her work. What does a photograph do? What ideas and visions of the world's future can photographs reproduce by recontextualizing them into something new?
back to gallery