The idea for the exhibition developed from a number of exeptional encounters. First of all Gotscho met Gilles Dusein, who was to become the first gallery owner to show his work in Paris. Urbi et Orbi, Dusein’s gallery in the rue de Turenne, was a major showcase for contemporary photography, and it was here that Dusein gave his enthusiastic support to artists whose work “fictionalizes” the human body. These artists included Pierre Molinier, of course, and to an even greater extent Nan Goldin, the brilliant American photographer whose “Ballad of Sexual Dependancy” had such a profound influence in the eighties.
The next important encounter was between Nan Goldin and Gotscho. This meeting not only marked the beginning of a firm friendship, it also resulted in a series of poignant portraits – the ones Gotscho uses in this exhibition.
With seven of today’s most stimulating fashion designers (Agnès B., Dirk Bikkembergs, Jean Colonna, Ann Demeulemeester, Martin Margiela, Ocimar Versolato, and José Lévy à Paris), Gotscho has created collective works that are fiercely personal.
Gotscho breaks new ground by dressing the photographic image, which in this way becomes a model. The garment is sewn onto the image and becomes indissociable from it. By dressing the image, Gotscho conceals its original subject, and the portrait in effect becomes sculpture.
In breaking away from traditional fashion photography and photomontage, Gotscho achieves a truly radical stance. An elegant iconoclast, he does not tear icons apart but instead uses seams, folds and stitches to bring about carefully planned and orchestrated fragmentations.
Jean-Luc Monterosso, Director