FACELESS SOCIETY No.8

A very popular print photographed in the streets of Hillbrow Johannesburg showing Nelson Mandela in his boxing days.

Artist: MARTIN OSNER  

Edition: 20 

Medium: Archival print on fine art paper

Size: 90cm x 60cm / 35" x 24" (Including border)

ABOUT THE FACELESS SOCIETY COLLECTION

Day by day, life goes on, year by year, society documents itself on walls and subways of the city. First exhibited at the Stephanie Hoppen Gallery in London (2008), this collection was photographed in the notorious Hillbrow and Brixton areas of Johannesburg, South Africa. "Faceless Society" is a collection of photographs taken of social leaders' posters found on the street and questions their final role in society.  Adverts, pinups, and news clippings of social leaders, sports stars, models, actors, and political appointments are posted regularly on the city walls, one on top of the other. After all, is said and done, time will be the judge of their success and failures.  When generations move on, are these leaders going to look back with pride on their legacy? Or are they going to wish their faces were hidden from the records? 

ABOUT THE ARTIST

On a winter’s day in 1984 “photography” and I met quite by accident, an encounter that redirected my life and changed it forever. Over the past twenty-eight years, while walking a path of self-discovery, my methodology has taken numerous detours. A journey that has refined a relaxed subconscious attitude, with a desire to express simplicity and honesty through my work. For me, a photograph holds an undeniable sense of realism, a new correlation that is easy to associate with. I see I understand; I experience, I connect. In my photography, I allow day to day life to provide inspiration ... Read More >>