Biting reality

See two projects by photographer Matt Siber.

The first one is called Floating Logos, and I think the above picture is pretty self-explanatory.
The second has a name which at first seems innocent: The Untitled Project. Then, you see the images. And then, read the texts. And then, you get it.

Siber reminds us that artists, at least conceptual artists, view the photograph as a flat field of information rather than a window. He accomplishes this by re-posting the removed words on a blank sheet next to the expurgated original. They pop to the surface of the sheet turning it into a page. Like the painter with a blank canvass, and writer with a blank sheet, the photographer starts with an invisible idea and collects visual facts to support it.

(from the curatorial note of The Untitled Project)

Both projects have a fresh feel to them: they are smart and well-made, entertaining - yet they go beyond the pretty surface. They have a very strong conceptual side to them - but Siber doesn't forget the aesthetic part of the game. "Game" goes particularly well with The Untitled Project, as we try and fill in the spaces, guessing what goes where- and why. And then, we might think about all this information we take for granted, its quantity and quality, and maybe, just maybe, think about how to deal with it. In an entertaining, yet smart, way.