Bathers, #12, 2003
Lambda Print mounted on aluminum
31 1/2 by 47 1/2 inches
Edition 3/5
My photographic interest is to reflect upon our perceptions of reality. My projects often recognizes the enormous impact that advertisements and printed images have upon our understanding of reality and the creation of desire. Constructed of representations of bathers, swimmers, or people frolicking in the waters along our coastline, the source images from the Bathers project drawing exclusively from travel brochures and tourist literature gather from around the world. The cultural history of representation of bathers or swimmers reaches from antiquity and medieval book painting and on to painting by Cezanne and Matisse and on to today in these commercial brochures. In examining my source materials closely, carefully selecting and recomposing the grouping of individuals with both in camera and extra camera manipulation, I create new images that suggest the enormous expanse of sea and the fragile balance between mankind and the shore.
Born and educated in German, Thomas Zika has exhibited widely in Europe since 1989. He recently participated in a major exhibition in Luxembourg entitled, De L’Europe at the Centre National de L’audiovisuel which featured 25 photographers that contemplated the social, political and developmental issues facing contemporary Europe. He has also exhibited in New York City and with Edward Cella Art+Architecture on the West Coast.
