Carte Postale (Post Card)

Carte Postale (Post Card) 20 x 16 inches.
Acrylic Box frame, archival pigment print on Hahnmühle German Etching 310 gsm.
A limited edition of 15. Signed and numbered.

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Carte Postale (Post Card) provides a re-interpretation of the concept of 'correspondence'. Vintage postcards of contrasting subject matter and origin are spliced together, forming new context and meaning.

This bifocal juxtaposition creates a portal between two geographical locations - Harrogate, in Yorkshire, England; Juan-Les-Pins, in the French Côte d'Azur. Both share the common axis of the cut-out silhouette of British émigré Harry Binns; of Harrogate birthplace. The coexistence of two separate moments in Binns' lifetime create a surreal mise en scène of a traditional, modest upbringing, punched-out by hedonist tableaux representing an exposure to a cultural counterpoint - the french riviera, circa 1960s; and its 'douceur de vivre'.

Carte Postale (Post Card) references the work of English conceptual artist John Stezaker (born 1949), and in particular his 'Masks' series; whilst also embracing the Henri Matisse maxim "Colours must also react on one another."

The artwork title is a riff on the phrase 'femme fatale'; suggesting the subject's emotional outlook was distorted by an exposure to new experiences. This reframing of time and place simultaneously portray two phases of an individual's timeline; via a window which opens out onto contradictory, reactive landscapes.

All artwork and images © James Straffon 2018.

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