- Joined
- Oct 7, 2008
- Messages
- 61,301
- Location
- Bulgaria
In 1992 Serrano gained permission to photograph corpses at an unnamed morgue in an American city, provided that none of the subjects would be recognizable in the images.
The result was The Morgue, a series of close-up images of dead bodies that strongly reference visual qualities of Baroque art in their rich color palette and preoccupation with the physicality of each body and its wounds.
Each photograph shows only a small part of the human body, such as a foot, a hand, or a veiled face. Serrano suggests that "focusing on details gives their individual qualities more expression. As well as the human being still present, these details symbolize death, sometimes horrible and violent barbaric, sometimes cunning and peaceful." He also explains his choice of close-cropped images by saying that "I felt that concentrating on a detail could tell me more than the whole." Serrano chose to use a black backdrop for all the images in the series. He says "by using a device such as a black background, I'm able to alienate the subject from its environment and put it into a studio context. Also, I find black a very inspirational color, and in the case of the morgue, it seems to suggest a void which is appropriate".
By associating death with classical beauty (through the use of chiaroscuro-like lighting as well as veiling), but through the realistic lens of photography rather than the "safer" and more distancing medium of painting, Serrano pushes the viewer to face death and mortality more directly.
