[Photo Collage: Three People Holding Oars, Sitting on a Large Fish] 1870 - 1880

This whimsical photo collage, Three People Holding Oars, Sitting on a Large Fish, was created by Juan Pedro Chabalgoity. The composition centers on three figures, each equipped with an oar, perched atop a large fish. The figures' faces appear to be separate photographs collaged onto the bodies. The artist's method challenges our expectations of representation. The fish, rendered with attention to detail, starkly contrasts with the cartoonish, almost surreal depiction of the figures. The uniformity in their poses creates a sense of rhythm, while the overall composition—the figures aligned in a row—suggests a narrative frozen in time. The bright orange background flattens the image, pushing the foreground elements forward and emphasizing the collage's constructed nature. By destabilizing the conventional relationship between foreground and background, Chabalgoity invites us to question the very act of image-making and its potential to create new forms of meaning.