MARKUS ROCK CHIMERA

BBA Gallery presents ‘Chimera’ (2019-23), an exhibition by guest artist and 2022 BBA Photography Prize shortlisted photographer Markus Rock. Completed in a single session, the series documents two women - choreographer Julia and her dancer Siri - performing a pre-rehearsed dance in such close proximity that their two bodies fuse together, producing the illusion of new and independent beings.

In Greek mythology, the Chimera - a source of morbid fascination - is a hybrid beast, an imaginary monster consisting of mismatched parts. Within a black space, lit in such a way that their skin resembles Renaissance paintings, the pale and lithe limbs of the dancers mirror and tangle together; they emerge from shadowed flesh, connected at bizarre, unnatural angles. The illusion of the Chimera comes alive thanks to the uncanny physical similarity between Julia and Siri, between whom the boundary of the individual ceases to exist. In its stead, the viewer observes the absurd and grotesque Chimera. Through ‘Chimera’, Rock plays with perception and imagination. The bodies are a projection surface where individuals influence how parts of the body combine to form unusual organisms. Upon second glance, these new beings dissolve back into a recognizable assemblage of body parts.

What strikes wonder from these intimate nude photographs, are the close personal and professional relationships that made the realisation of such a sensitive shoot possible. Markus Rock based the series on Julia’s choreographic work with her dancer Siri. Prior to the shoot, the two women had worked for 2 ½ years on a project together, making their extreme physical closeness possible. Photographed in 2019 at Uferstudios, Berlin and printed in 2023, ‘Chimera’ is a testament to the transformative potential of human connections that go beyond verbal communication.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Markus Rock (b. 1962, Germany) began his career in commercial and production design, where - for over 25 years - he worked with international high profile clients such as Vivien Westwood, Harper’s Bazaar, MTV and Sony Music in San Francisco, Munich, Paris and Barcelona. Following his move to Berlin in 2008, Rock turned to fine art photography as his preferred medium of expression. Since then, his poignant reflections on what it means to be human in contemporary society have been shown internationally.