Roger Ballen's Theatre of the Mind played out in Sydney exhibition
His raw, black & white images are alluring, fascinating and disturbing. He is one of the most important and exciting photographers of the 21st century. The intriguing work of Roger Ballen is coming to Sydney College of the Arts (SCA) this March in the artist's first major Sydney exhibition.
Staged to coincide with the 20th Biennale of Sydney, Roger Ballen鈥檚 Theatre of the Mind is a provocative exhibition of 75 contemporary works created by the artist over the last two decades.
, Dean of the University of Sydney鈥檚 contemporary art school and curator of the exhibition, said: 鈥淔or a long time Roger Ballen鈥檚 photography has trodden a path where others are too timid to tread, toying with our innermost dreams, nightmares and desires. The raw, atmospheric exhibition spaces at [the site of the former Rozelle Psychiatric Hospital] are the ideal setting to articulate this core aspect of Ballen鈥檚 work.鈥�
Born in New York in 1950,聽聽has lived in Johannesburg since the 1970s. His work as a geologist took him across the countryside and led him to explore, through the camera lens, the smaller South African towns. His early photographs of the hidden lives of people living on the fringes of society made considerable impact, receiving acclaim from American writer and filmmaker Susan Sontag among others.
Through the medium of black and white photography, Ballen has achieved a unique integration of drawing, painting and installation that have been compared to the masters of art brut. His peculiar and somewhat shocking imagery confronts the viewer and drags them into the work. Viewers are participants in the work - not merely observers - taking them on a journey into the recesses of their minds, as Ballen explores his own.
Roger Ballen鈥檚 Theatre of the Mind聽consists of five sections that see people, birds, animal and inanimate subjects become the 鈥榗ast鈥� in an exhibition that is hard-hitting, psychological theatre. The Sydney exhibition includes a new installation work created onsite at SCA by Ballen in response to the site鈥檚 mental health history, in the labyrinth of underground cells of the former Rozelle hospital.
The show includes Ballen鈥檚 award-winning music video聽聽by South African rap-rave group Die Antwoord, which has received over 76 million hits on YouTube and earned a cult following. In addition, the public will be able to access his equally remarkable video works Outland and Asylum of the Birds.
The worldwide impact of Ballen鈥檚 work was celebrated in major retrospective exhibition at Washington DC鈥檚 Smithsonian National Museum of African Art from 2013 to 2014. It was this exhibition that drove Rhodes鈥� interest to bring Ballen鈥檚 work to Australia.
鈥淲hen I first saw Ballen鈥檚 work en masse, I was struck by the role of drawing in his photos and what seemed to me a relationship with art Brut or outsider Art. The artist鈥檚 interest in and knowledge of outsider art is a key part of understanding the growth of Ballen鈥檚 identity as an international artist,鈥� said Professor Rhodes.
Roger Ballen will present a public talk in Sydney at聽聽on 9 March, ahead of the official opening of his Sydney exhibition on Tuesday 15 March.聽Roger Ballen鈥檚 Theatre of the Mind聽is showing at聽聽from 16 March to 30 April 2016. A 96-page book will accompany the exhibition featuring Ballen鈥檚 photography and an essay by Professor Rhodes.