Shape of Light: 100 Years of Photography And Abstract Art

A major new exhibition at Tate Modern will reveal the intertwined stories of photography and abstract art. Shape of Light: 100 Years of Photography and Abstract Art will be the first show of this scale to explore photography in relation to the development of abstraction, from the early experiments of the 1910s to the digital innovations of the 21st century. Featuring over 300 works by more than 100 artists, the exhibition will explore the history of abstract photography side-by-side with iconic paintings and sculptures.

Shape of Light will place moments of radical innovation in photography within the wider context of abstract art, such as Alvin Langdon Coburn’s pioneering ‘vortographs’ from 1917. This relationship between media will be explored through the juxtaposition of works by painters and photographers, such as cubist works by George Braque and Pierre Dubreuil or the abstract expressionism of Jackson Pollock and Otto Steinert’s ‘luminograms’. Abstractions from the human body associated with surrealism will include André Kertesz’s Distorsions, Imogen Cunningham’s Triangles and Bill Brandt’s Baie des Anges, Frances 1958, exhibited together with a major painting by Joan Miró. Elsewhere the focus will be on artists whose practice spans diverse media, such as László Moholy-Nagy and Man Ray.

The exhibition will also acknowledge the impact of MoMA’s landmark photography exhibition of 1960, The Sense of Abstraction. Installation photographs of this pioneering show will be displayed with some of the works originally featured in the exhibition, including important works by Edward Weston, Aaron Siskind and a series by Man Ray that has not been exhibited since the MoMA show, 58 years ago.

The connections between breakthroughs in photography and new techniques in painting will be examined, with rooms devoted to Op Art and Kinetic Art from the 1960s, featuring striking paintings by Bridget Riley and installations of key photographic works from the era by artists including Floris Neussis and Gottfried Jaeger. Rooms will also be dedicated to the minimal and conceptual practices of the 1970s and 80s. The exhibition will culminate in a series of new works by contemporary artists, Tony Cairns, Maya Rochat and Daisuke Yokota, exploring photography and abstraction today.

Shape of Light is curated by Simon Baker, Senior Curator, International Art (Photography) and Shoair Mavlian, Assistant Curator, Tate Modern, with Emmanuelle de l’Ecotais, Curator for Photographs, Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris. The exhibition will be accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue from Tate Publishing and a programme of talks and events in the gallery.

HYUNDAI CARD

Hyundai Card is a leading premium credit card firm based in Seoul, Korea. It is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Group. It has been named the credit industry’s “Most Respected Company” and ‘Most Desired Employer’ by KMAC, Korea’s largest management consultancy association. It was also ranked #1 in customer satisfaction for five years in a row by Korea’s National Customer Satisfaction Index.

As one of Korea’s largest hosts of cultural events, Hyundai Card seeks to identify changes in our culture, society, and technology and utilize them to enrich lives. Whether Hyundai Card hosting tomorrow’s cultural pioneers at our stages and art spaces, building libraries on design, travel, music, and cooking for our members, or designing credit cards and digital services that are as beautiful as they are functional, Hyundai Card’s most inventive endeavours all draw from the creative well that the arts provide.

Shape of Light is the third exhibition in a three-year commitment by Hyundai Card to Tate Modern’s expanding exploration of photography. We hope that visitors will be engaged and their curiosities kindled by the dynamic and boundary-pushing work of this important artist.

For more information, please visit www.hyundaicard.com.