Aaron McElroy

b 1978 USA. Lives and works in New York.

ARTIST STATEMENT

Aaron McElroy’s photographs take us on a voyeuristic trip where we are exposed to the snapshots of undressed women often captured in the banality of the domestic environment (be it in the bathroom, on a vintage chair in the half dark living room or among crumpled sheets with the flower pattern). McElroy is obviously intrigued by the female body. He tirelessly focuses his camera on skin texture, hair and often looks for ultimately awkward body postures and unusual angels. Some images show us women in moments of their quotidian life (casually taking off their clothes or quietly peeing), pushing us into a voyeuristic position. McElroy adds a layer of mystery by never revealing the identities of his subjects as he crops out their faces or shoots from behind. We are left wondering: who are these women? What are the connections between photographer and his models? What are the emotions we are not aware of?

Faded colour palette, intentional obscurity and McElroy’s
 sensitivity bring poetic element to the visual narrative. Shots of women in different stages of undress are carefully mixed with random objects and pieces of clothing. Images of flowers (in a variety of full blossom to decay) appear throughout McElroy’s work, as a reference to the cycles of life and death. They are always
 wittingly paired with other photographs reflecting McElroy’s
 aesthetic. Repetition of colours, various patterns and shapes
 constitute the core of the series and tie everything together in a 
distinct visual flow.

McElroy shares with us just a glimpse of his world which never fully
 reveals all its secrets and intentions. Nothing is outright on display 
in McElroy’s images, yet they provoke tension and discomfort.
 The combination of curious interest and uncomfortable intrusion is
 exactly what makes these images so compelling.

Vita

  • Exhibitions
  • 2016
  • 50 Contemporary Artists by Enter Art Foundation - Orenstein & Koppel Lofts - Berlin - DE
  • Enter Art Foundation Pop Up for Art Basel - Messeturm - Basel - CH

To: Aaron McElroy

  • Dieses Feld dient zur Validierung und sollte nicht verändert werden.

Works by Aaron McElroy