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For
more than a decade, Michael Wesely (German, b. 1963) has been inventing
and refining techniques for making photographs with unusually long
exposures-some as long as three years. In 1997 he began using this
unique approach to photography to explore major urban construction
projects, such as the rebuilding of Potsdamer Platz in Berlin. Buildings
that are demolished or constructed over the course of Wesely's long
exposures often appear ghostlike, evoking simultaneously a vanishing
and emerging presence.
Open
Shutter focuses on a major body of work created by Wesely at
the invitation of The Museum of Modern Art. In the summer of 2001,
he set up cameras at several locations in and around the Museum's
ambitious renovation and construction project. Completed in June
2004, at the conclusion of major construction, Wesely's photographs
provide an absorbing perspective on the historic transformation
of the Museum's home in the heart of a thriving city.
The
exhibition is accompanied by a publication, which presents Open
Shutter in full-page plates and enlarged details that enable
readers to discover the rich complexity of each photograph.
Organized
by Sarah Hermanson Meister, Associate Curator, Research and Collections,
Department of Photography.
Pictured
above:
Michael
Wesely. 7.8.2001-7.6.2004 The Museum of Modern Art, New York.
2001-04. Chromogenic color print, 78 3/4 x 108 1/4" (200 x
275 cm). The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Purchase. © 2004 Michael
Wesely
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