PHOTOCUBES by Erik Kessels

kesselskramer, 2009, First edition, 48 pp., 6 3/4" X 8 3/4", Softcover

Fine

An exploration of the Photo Cube - a strange novelty item now largely consigned to history. Each photo cube features advertisements or family snapshots strategically placed around five of its faces. The result is a weird (and sometimes wonderful) juxtaposition of images: a stately bearded man adjoins a fluffy white poodle, a picturesque snowscape connects to a statue of a mermaid. Where regular photo albums create linear visual narratives of holidays, birthdays and weddings, the photo cube re-orders ordinary events in a disjointed but oddly compelling 3-D collage.