Thursday, March 17, 2011

A feast for eye and mind

No, not just Mary Wollstonecraft herself, delectable though she no doubt was. The visual and mental feast I refer to is the latest in a series of magnificent photomontages by Red Saunders. This cleverly composed image of the Rational Dissenters of  Newington Green features a group of women, with Mary in the centre, and two men, presumably Dr Price --and Friendly Church, perhaps? The church is behind them; the brick terrace where the minister lived has been digitally extended beyond its wildest mid-seventeenth century ambitions; the green is free, or bereft, both of children's playing equipment and lowing cattle.

It is one of several large photo/compositions, collectively called "Hidden",  and will be on display in the foyer of the Museum of London until 6 April. I sincerely hope that the collection will remain on the website indefinitely.

Here is the image of Mary, and here the Museum's general explanation of what it calls "tableaux vivant":
"Hidden" engages with a different historical narrative involving dissenters, revolutionaries and radicals. Red Saunders combines his photographic practice with cultural, artistic, musical, and political activism.  He said, "I recreate important moments in the long struggle of working people for democracy and social justice. History has been dominated by kings, queens, war and ‘great men’."

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