Marco Guerra's new body of work is a series of 33 photographs, each of which is a mysterious, intimate Chiaroscuro scene. At the silent hours of dawn in the streets of Tangiers, the artist captures the pedestrians passing through the glimmer of the streetlights at a barren crossroads. The furtive silhouettes opening the day seem to float elegantly above the dark space surrounding them. An attentive viewer may hear the quiet rustling of their thick covering garment. Marco spent two years capturing the same street intersection at a consistent time. The elevated perspective of the photographer from a corner balcony combined with the subtle light of the street, allow for a space of discretion between the subject and the viewer. The deep and absorbing images trigger the curiosity of the observer who may create his own interpretation and give different stories to the anonymous characters.
As he is flipping through the multitude of photographs in his SoHo studio; he painstakingly selects those which should be included in the final series and confides: "These images are the essence of two years that I spent observing the secretive and timeless scenes that were taking place under my balcony in Tangiers at the crack of dawn. I could see without being seen -- I couldn't help but wanting to capture these mysterious and silent characters, who would furtively pass by before the loud chaos of the street arose with the sun."
Born in 1965, the Chilean photographer lives and works in New York City since 1979. He has grown his artistic sensitivity and acute eye through a successful international career in fashion. His work gained the attention of the art scene a little less than a decade ago with the "One thousand and one dreams" series -- a collection of work combining photography and calligraphy created in collaboration with his partner, artist Yasmina Alaoui. Together they portrayed nude bodies in movement, onto which Yasmina would later paint Arabic calligraphy and henna patterns. The whole series feels like an artistic spectrum of lights and shadows drawing the complex and oppressing relationship with nudity and sensuality that can be found in traditional oriental cultures. This project was inspired by a legendary collection of tales from the Middle East, and the magic surrealism of South American literature.
From one body of work to the other, Marco sways between nudes and covered silhouettes, constantly portraying sensuality and unveiling personalities from his own perspective. The Tangier project is a touching photographic work that brings again the light to Marco's artistic sensitivity and his great ability to compose poetic life portraits through the analog medium.
The new series will be soon unveiled at www.marcoguerra.com -- exhibition calendar to come soon.