Angels 2000

Arsen Savadov made "Angels" with a camera - but when it was made, nobody knows! It's a weird, staged scene on a beach with two men dressed as angels, one taking a picture of what looks like a dead mermaid. It's such a strange image, so full of contrasts. You've got this beautiful, natural setting, then these fake angels, and then this grotesque, unnatural creature on the beach. The artist must be interested in how we make meaning from images, staging the scene to be photograph and making us the viewers consider what it all means. The light is also very important in this image, and the artist uses a reflector to bounce light onto the angels, making them glow and appear even more otherworldly. They are working, doing a job. The texture of the beach, the rocks and the water contrast to the bodies of the figures. The whole photograph feels staged, asking us to question our assumptions about what is real and what is fake, what is beautiful and what is ugly. It reminds me of Jeff Wall's photographs which are also staged, yet they have a hyper realism. Art isn't about providing answers; it's about raising questions.