Collective Red 1998

Arsen Savadov made "Collective Red" without a specified date, and what strikes me first is the odd, performative quality of the image, the dark colour palette punctuated by the red curtain. It feels like something is revealed to us in the making of this photograph, but what exactly? There's a lot happening in this image, a bull-man, a torero, and another figure dressed in white, with one of those shoes that look like it’s from a Dr. Seuss book. The bodies are all so present, so available, in a weird, dreamlike scenario. The surface has a quality that feels unreal, even though the subject matter is so carnal. Looking at this image, I wonder if Savadov was thinking about the work of Pierre Molinier, who also explored similar themes around sexuality and the body in surreal and provocative ways. Like Molinier, Savadov seems to be inviting us to question what is real and what is staged, what is beautiful and what is grotesque. It's a conversation that has no easy answers, but one that keeps us engaged, thinking, and feeling.