Andreas Gursky: “Bangkok IV”, 2013, Inkjet on Dibond, signed, numbered, edition of 50, in a white frame, Mirogard-glass, size: 46 x 35 cm, size in frame: 55,4 x 44 cm. Price 25.000 EUR. Contact Gallery
Andreas Gursky’s photos of Bangkok show the dark, moving water of the Chao Phraya River in Thailand. On the one hand, its shimmering surface is reminiscent of modern painting, such as the famous paintings of abstracts like Hans Arp. On the other hand, they recall the dangerous patterns of military camouflage fabrics. The river is seductively beautiful at first glance, but on closer inspection, the civilisation rubbish floating in it emerges – flotsam of a threatening reality in the midst of cheerful water reflections. Gursky’s images allude in an aesthetically appealing and subtle way to the environmental dangers Bangkok faces, which culminated in the devastating Thai floods shortly after these photographs were taken.
Literature: Andreas Gursky: Bangkok, 2012, Publisher, Steidl, Englisch, ISBN-10 : 3869305541.
