Monday 21 March 2011

Le Saut dans le Vide (Leap into the Void); October 1960 by Yves Klein



Yves Klein was brilliantly multi-faceted, adept at sculpture, drawings, architecture, paint, installation pieces, the guy was just pretty good all round. I first encountered Klein at the Pompidou Centre where a lot of his blue monochromes were on exhibition, and they really struck a chord with me. However, it was this specific photograph that provided the more interesting thinking fodder.

The above image is just majestic yet unsatisfactorily unreal, what looks like that Klein is falling yet held frozen in the air, what should be impending hospitalisation transforms into a surreal flight. I like that the image confronts the viewer with superficial misdirection.

A huge compendium of his work is available for viewing on his website: here.

7 comments:

  1. Here are some other favourites:

    The Blue Monochromes: http://www.yveskleinarchives.org/works/works3_us.html

    These images don't do the paintings justice, the texture, deep hue and sheer size is marvellous.

    This particular image adds a human physicality to the fold, which is enjoyable:

    http://www.yveskleinarchives.org/works/large/ant63.jpg

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  2. Yeh it is a good photography but still just lucky!! it was the decisive moment within this photograph which made it soo cool. i cant help but feel it was luck..you have to decided whether it is just a really quick photograph or art??

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  3. Well, the photograph was predetermined, that is Klein himself mid-flight there, so indeed it wasn't actually him to took the image, but I see no element of luck. Klein wanted this to happen.

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  4. what he asked the man to fall out of the window??

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  5. No that is Klein jumping out of the window.

    "that is Klein himself mid-flight there"

    It's why I said there's an element of misdirection:

    "what should be impending hospitalisation transforms into a surreal flight".

    He didn't actually fall and hurt himself, it's a trick of the eye. It's one of the reasons why I like this image so much.

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  6. yeh ok... still dont like his work though..but can understand why people would.

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  7. To be honest, this is the only example of photography done by Klein I could find, and well his monochrome works are definitely an acquired taste.

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