Travel has been accredited by many artists as a major source of inspiration from famous writers to iconic painters. One of the most awe inspiring experiences in seeing a new place is being exposed to the historic architecture that is unique to each city. Often times, the more breathtaking and meticulously cared for structures are places of worship from a time when no expenses were spared.
Next month, photographer Markus Brunetti will debut a show entitled FACADES at New York’s Yossi Millo Gallery, in which he photographed the façades of historic cathedrals, churches and cloisters in Europe over the past 10 years.
The results are no vacation snapshots – they are a compilation of many photos that often take years to complete. Each of Brunetti’s works begin with an iPhone photo, which he then studies before taking hundreds to thousands of photos in similar light or weather conditions. Often times during this process, buildings will be under construction meaning he may have to wait years until he can shoot the structure in its entirety. After the photos are captured, Brunetti and his partner Betty Schoener mount and reconstruct the facades into 10 foot high images that go far beyond photography (when asked what he calls this process, Brunetti states “the right term hasn’t been found yet”).
“This explains why we could only finish 42 works in the last 10 years,” he said. “The builders and architects that built the churches had to be patient; most of them never saw the finished result of their endeavors as it took many decades or hundreds of years to finish the buildings. I try to work on ‘Facades’ with the same spirit and patience they must have had when starting to work on the real buildings” said Brunetti in an INTERVIEW.
Brunetti plans to continue expanding on the project and will soon incorporate photos of synagogues, mosques, and temples throughout the world. FACADES will be on view beginning September 10th at Yossi Milo Gallery.
All Images © Markus Brunetti, Courtesy Yossi Milo Gallery, New York
