Yorgos Lanthimos premieres his still photography in Los Angeles

Yorgos Lanthimos recently opened the first exhibition of his still photography at Webber 939 in Los Angeles. Yorgos Lanthimos: Photographs, which was jointly organized by Webber 939 and MACK, features photographs from two of the artist's recently published monographs i shall sing these songs beautifully (MACK, 2024) and Dear God, the Parthenon is Still Broken (Void, 2024).

Lanthimos, who is celebrated in the world of cinema for his striking visual style and keen eye for unmasking the absurdities of life, took up a still camera partly out of the necessity of taking on-set photos and partly out of fascination with the ability of the still camera to extract a point in time and impart an independent existence to that moment. The photos contained in the aforementioned monographs were taken by the artist on the set of his two most recent films, Poor Things (2023) and Kinds of Kindness (2024).

Whereas Lanthimos’ films have gained a reputation for their visceral grotesqueness and dream-like deliriousness, the photos that he took during the shoot of Poor Things capture an atmosphere removed from the macabre, exposing a different narrative perspective. His subjects exude a physicality bordering on the tangible, their bodies injected into a photographic space that walks a fine line between realities.

The photos taken by Lanthimos on the set of Kinds of Kindness carry a different weight and might imply that his intention was to deconstruct his film. In fact, the photos reveal the interstitial spaces that are nestled within it, drained of the spectacle and the story.

Yorgos Lanthimos: Photography is open through May 24, 2025. More about this and other exhibitions organized by Webber 939 can be found on the gallery site.