Title of publication: Lotus
Name of artist: Max Pinckers & Quinten De Bruyn
Additional contributor / Texts: Our Ladies of the Flowers by Hans Theys
Transgenderism – the body culture by Nada Chaiyajit
Disposable camera images on yellow flaps by Aum & Bell, Chan & Nada, Sonya, Gina.
Design: Manuel Zenner, Werkplaats Typografie, Arnhem, The Netherlands, ArtEZ Institute of the Arts
Editor: Max Pinckers & Quinten De Bruyn
Publication date: May 2011
Place of publication: Brussels, Belgium
Edition size: 40, signed and dated
Format: Softcover
Size: 195 x 270 cm
Number of pages: 110 pages with 12 expandable flaps
Type of printing: Digital
Name of printer: DPN
Number of pictures: 78 on white and 156 on yellow
Price: 70 euro
Description of book: In the series Lotus, Max Pinckers and Quinten De Bruyn document the world of transsexuals in Thailand. The gender crisis that the so called ladyboys face is transformed into a visual metaphor directed towards the identity crisis that contemporary documentary photography confronts, when it dares to reflect upon itself in a critical way and expose its internal paradoxes.
The documentary photographer that captures reality as ‘a fly on the wall’ can’t deny his directive and manipulative role any longer. His anonymity, his seeming absence is merely a pose. Finally heis the one with all the power and he chooses over ‘the decisive moment’. The tableaux that he captures are not lies, but enfold themselves within the studio that he creates from reality. The illusion of transparency is demystified and scattered into a void of uncertainty.
This series reflects on documentary photography as a medium and searches for new ways of storytelling. Lead by the diverse world of transsexuals in Thailand, Pinckers and De Bruyn make their presence as photographers felt, yet leaving enough room for spontaneity. Tableau-like images suggest strong narratives that freely associate to one another creating fabricated worlds that balance on the fine line between reality and fiction.
The best thing about self-publishing: FREEDOM!
Artist website: www.maxpinckers.be / www.manuelzenner.eu / www.hanstheys.be
