On 22 March
2012 the worldly renowned black and white film photographer, Roger Ballen’s, film
photography exhibition, Play Pen, was
opened at the NWU Potchefstroom Campus Gallery.
“Black and White is a very minimalist art form and
unlike color photographs does not pretend to mimic the world in a manner
similar to the way the human eye might perceive. Black and White is essentially
an abstract way to interpret and transform what one might refer to as reality.” – Roger Ballen
“Where did it all start? With your first memory? Or perhaps in other parts of the mind?”, Ballen stated these questions about his pictures. Although he cannot tell where it all started, he categorizes his work into five periods. The first started in 1982, with the theme of Dorps and Small Towns in South Africa (1982-1986). During these times people were still isolated and a genuine and unique environment existed in these dorps and small towns. Ballen was inspired to capture these esthetic elements, which made it so unique, so isolated, so different. He travelled about 3000km during this project, which ended in 1986.
Front Door, Napier, 1983
Up to
1982, all his pictures were outside and he took pictures with only his 35mm 6x6
Rolex camera. Ballen started to use a flash and interiors began to interest
him. In 1984 he began to take wire photographs as seen in Bedroom Bethulie (1984). These pictures have a sense of enigma and
surrealism. One cannot say what it is about.
Bedroom Bethulie, 1984
His
second period, Platteland, Images from
Rural South Africa (1986-1994),
in photography began in 1986. During this period Ballen published a book, Dorps, which put him internationally on
the map. He published nine books to date including, Boyhood (1979), Platteland (1994),
Cette Afrique la (1997), Outland (2001), Fact or Fiction (2003), Shadow
Chamber (2005), Boarding House (2009),
and another upcoming book. You can read more about these books on his website. The
pictures he took during this period and onward are formalistic. Forms are
repeated throughout the pictures to create a focal point and to emphasize a certain
message. Everything in the pictures means something. The picture, Dresie and Casie (1993) is probably his
most famous picture, “…maby even more
famous than myself”, says Ballen. This picture is also voted one of the
most influential pictures of the millennium. The question about why a certain
picture stays in one’s mind, intrigues Ballen. He states, “A photograph is a visual statement. The more visual it is, the harder
it is to put it into words.” And this is exactly why there is no
explanation for Ballen’s pictures. The emotion hits your gut first before any
questions about what the picture is about, comes to mind.
Dresie & Casie, 1993
Man shaving on Verandah, Western Transvaal (1986) is on of Ballen’s person favorites during this period.
Man shaving on Verandah, 1986
This period
is followed by Outland (1994-2000). It
is an important period for Ballen, when he stopped going to the countryside.
Ballen says that he has said what he wanted. Ballen’s photography view also
shifted in this period, now seeing himself as a photographer and an artist, but
never calling himself a photographer because it was associated with the
journalists which was not a good group to be associated with in those times of
political rivalry.
His
definition of a good photograph is: “To
take a shot that is penetrating, which stands on its own two feet, a picture
that is lasting.”
Another
transition appears in his work with Portrait
of Sleeping Girl (1999), where drawings on the walls and objects are in his
pictures. Some of the images in the pictures Ballen drew himself, other he
found there and the subjects in his photos drew some. This is the beginning
of the next period in his work, called Shadow
Chamber (2000-2004). This series of pictures is shot in little rooms. The
first phase has a theatrical feel to it. “The
photographer as director of the camera and the stage in the mind.” Ballen
says. In the second phase the faces of his subjects starts to disappear. Ballen
describes this period as “…backwards and
forwards. I don’t distinguish between the two anymore.”
Sleeping Girl, 1999
His
second last period, Boarding House (2004-2008),
is shot in a boarding house near Johannesburg and looks more like a warehouse.
Fragments, 2005
Ballen’s
latest work, 2008 up until today, doesn’t consist of a name yet but focuses around
the theme of birds. Ballen’s work also featured in the South African band, Die
Antwoord’s music video, I Fink U Freaky.
Follow the link to view the music video http://goo.gl/xMmNZ
Die Antwoord, I Fink U Freaky
Ballen
makes use of TMX 6x6 400 and Ilford Delta Pro 400 black and white film. He is
not resistant towards digital photography, but he has been taking film photos
for 50 years now. Ballen states that he’d never say never and doesn’t know what
this technologically driven society might hold in for him. When asked if he
thinks that film is making a come back, Ballen stated, “as we will never go around on horses, rather than cars, again, film
will never be equal to digital photography again. It is exclusive to the group
of passionate film lovers only.”
Untitled, 2009
He has
his own darkroom and develops most of his pictures himself. Many of his
pictures, especially his latest worked, Shadow
Chamber, has the feel
of an edited, combined collage picture, but Ballen says that he never stages
his pictures. A staged picture has a plastic, fast food feel to it. “When a picture can never be repeated again
and captures a unique moment, it is not a staged picture.” Ballen never
plans his pictures beforehand but rather discover them on location. “I see the world based on the way a camera
captures the world.”
Discipline,
passion, patience, and obsession are some of the most important characteristics
Ballen thinks that he as a photographer consists of. What makes photography so
difficult, according to Ballen, is that you capture the same place and the same
people everyday, six times a week. And every picture must be different. Because
he visits his photography locations very often, he builds relationships with
his subjects. This relationship is also seen in the way he portrays the
intriguing characteristics of his subjects which gives them a unique, life-like
feeling. While he speaks about his subjects, he stares into the blank and
smile, reliving the memories captured on film.
The
Roger Ballen Foundation is dedicated to the advancement of education of
photography in South Africa. RBF creates and supports programs of the highest
quality to further the understanding and appreciation of the medium. Working
with artists from around the world, their program enables students and general
audiences to engage with notable contemporary photographic art that would
otherwise not be seen in South Africa. Follow the link to Ballen's photography foundation website: http://www.rogerballen.org/
Many may
say that his pictures are dark and gloomy, but Ballen states, “…from the dark comes the life.”
For more information about Roger Ballen follow the link to his website: http://www.rogerballen.com/
