Postromanticism The Art of Passion - Claudia Moscovici

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For
centuries soft shadows in painting expressed mood, emotion and
intimacy at least as much as color can. Da Vinci used chiaroscuro to convey
the ambiguity of human expression; Caravaggio to highlight the drama and
tumult of life; Vermeer to hint at blooming youth and the inner world of
thoughts and emotions; La Tour to suggest simple faith and pensiveness.
The photographer Philippe Pache relies upon this time-tested technique in
painting to bring life, drama and above all contemplation to artistic photography.
His nudes exude beauty and tranquility. They are exquisitely posed yet
look completely natural. The focus of his images is on how each gesture and
expression-the body itself-reveals a rich inner world of thought and feeling.
The interplay of light and shadow not only highlights the depth of human
subjectivity, but also marks the fluid boundaries between humanity and
nature. Some of his portraits, though always beautiful, are facial landscapes
of light, contour and shadow.
They gleam with the insentience of the mountains, sea and land that
sometimes surround them; they become one, interchangeable with their magnificent
natural settings. The beauty of femininity captured by Pache goes
beyond realistic visual representation. It is the landscape of our most haunting
and delicate dreams.
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