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Until Jeff Wall became one of the first artists to work with light boxes, photography was displayed in black and white, in small formats, like prints. By adopting the style of advertising in his works, Wall revolutionised photography. The exhibition shows 26 pieces by the Canadian photo artist from Vancouver; an impressive figure considering Jeff Wall’s meticulous methods and limited number of works.
There are examples of all three major groups of works in the Lipsius building: nineteen light boxes, six black-and-white photographs and one chromogenic colour print. They span 32 years of his work, from Doorpusher (1984) to his latest piece from 2009, Search of premises. The light box, with its documentary style, is one example of Jeff Wall’s “cinematographic” work. In it he fuses elements of photography, film and painting. Thus, the photographs are perfectly lit, reconstructed and extremely carefully planned. Often, digital montage is used to produce one seamless image composed of different versions, creating the impression of a freeze frame, like on a film set.