Includes bibliographical references (page 225-227).
Summary:
She's been referred to as the "Sufi Frida Kahlo." Maimouna Guerresi is a photographer, whose work sometimes incorporates sculpture, video, and installation art. Her unique style combines Afro-Asian themes and symbolism with the traditions of Western classical iconography. This unique melange incorporates cultural and religious influences, and fusion of different artistic languages. Her meticulously composed and highly impactful photographs include veiled figures that symbolise the body as a sacred building, as the "temple of the soul," a modernist style reminiscent of some traditional Madonnas of classical art. The costumes are made of fabrics that she has collected in travels in Africa or Asia. The book is composed of ten chapters, ranging from "Light Signs: Frontiers Between the Known and Unknown" to "The Giants: Dark Faces of the Great Spirit Guides" through photographs that are totally distinctive in terms of creating environments that are fantastic and ethereal and unlike the work of any other photographer working today. "Inner Constellations is the first published book of photography by Italian-born artist Maïmouna Guerresi, whose iconic, figurative photographs are celebrated around the world, both for their beauty and their melding of diverse cultural and religious influences. Raised in Catholic Italy, Maïmouna traveled to Senegal in 1991 and was so taken by the country's spiritual traditions that she converted to Islam. Since this spiritual transformation, Maïmouna's work has become infused with the rich history and iconography of Islam, with a particular emphasis on Sufi philosophy, which contends that all of the world's religions originate from a single divine source. From this place of universal respect and understanding, Maïmouna borrows freely from the symbols and mythology of the world's great religious traditions, blending elements of Islam, Judaism, and Christianity together in photographs that transcend the sum of their parts. In all of her photographs, Maïmouna treats the human body as sacred dwelling place, "the temple of the soul." In particular, she celebrates the divine power of the feminine form in places where women have historically been marginalized. Many of her female subjects are transformed into powerful symbols of the feminine divine, altars to the most primordial act of creativity. Draping her figures in exquisite, sculptural garments, many of which the artist creates by hand in collaboration with her subjects, Maïmouna references universal archetypes, as well as specific religious rituals. These sources are present in the various elements of her photograms, from the towering minaret-hats she crafts, to the gentle strength in the subjects' symbolically painted faces. The photographs in this book are related to each other without becoming redundant; some feature cavernous, veiled spaces of emptiness fabricated from black cloth, others draw attention to the presence of everyday objects within the frame"--Publisher's description.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.