photo series
Photo series “Grandfather” is based on the story of a little girl, who after the death of her grandfather scratched out his face from the family photos; because her grandfather had died and did not exist any more. Children’s hands don’t understand that photography is the memory’s aide and history’s tool – they just carry out the grandfather’s death on the photos. As Peeter Linnap said in the catalogue for the 2nd Saaremaa Biennial titled Invasion (where this work was first exhibited), “the artist does not start to decompose these specific pictures, as much as the general myth of photos as a prostehtic of reality.” These photos leave us alone with a cultural agreement and the spirits of time.
The work has been donated to EKKM by the author.
Media: “Another very interesting exhibit is from Mari Laanemetsa – a photo series Grandfather (1997) which is based on the story of a girl who after the death of her grandfather scratched his face out of her photos. Also in Laanemetsa’s vintage group pictures, which show people in different situations, there is one participant without a face. The result is an amazingly expressive and gives an idea of both the power and limits of fotomedia. ”
Postimees, 07/08/2011