Adam Fuss

Press release

The Baldwin Gallery is pleased to present new photographs by acclaimed contemporary artist Adam Fuss, whose latest series explores the rich iconography of African masks. Selecting particular masks for their unique designs and stark contrast between light and dark, the artist makes photograms directly from the objects. He captures the ghost-like, magical qualities of African masquerade, with its implications of ritual performance, hidden identity, and transformation.

In the midst of the digital age, Adam Fuss creates pictures of rare beauty and mystery with traditional and historical photographic techniques. Working without a camera, Fuss employs the 19th-Century photogram process involving the most basic elements of photography: objects and light. By adjusting the physical qualities of the actual object placed on light-sensitive paper and the length of its exposure, Fuss constructs stunning abstracted compositions. His evocative references, often with spiritual associations, have been realized in delicate images of christening gowns, birds in flight, floating babies and ephemeral columns of smoke.

Born in London in 1961, Fuss first studied photography in Australia while working for a commercial photographer. After arriving in New York in 1982, he began to focus on his own unique artistic vision. Solo exhibitions of his work have been held in France, Belgium, Germany, Australia, Sweden, Italy, Japan and the United States, and his art is found in museums and private collections worldwide. The Baldwin Gallery is publishing an illustrated catalogue to accompany the exhibition, entitled “Adam Fuss: Mask”.