28th August 2019
Boris Mikhailov 55
Gilda Williams (2001), Boris Mikhailov. Hong Kong: Phaidon Press Limited
This is the first time that I have come across the work of the Ukrainian photographer Boris Mikhailov’s work. I was very intrigued by that which I have read and the accompanying images.
Mikhailov was one of the most important artists to have come from the former USSR. As a Soviet photographer he was not supposed to photograph nudes or scenes that might bring the USSR into disrepute. His work combines conceptual art with social documentary photography, this is something that I am very interested in doing within the subjects of mental health and domestic violence.
There is a very good cross-section of images within the book. For me they are thought provoking, inspiring and have already fired up my imagination for themes to shoot in the future.
One thing that I absolutely love to see in books is the artists/ photographers ‘working outs,’ whether they are drawings or notes I find it interesting to see an artists/ photographers working methods.
This truly is a must buy, or if you are not the buying of books type, I cannot recommend looking up the life of and works of Boris Mikhailov.
