Rob Hornstra and Arnold van Bruggen
“The Sochi Project: An Atlas of War and Tourism in the Caucasus”
Aperture Gallery
547 West 27th Street (4th Floor), New York, NY 10001
Reception: June 4, 2014 7-8:30 pm
May 30 – July 10, 2014
Sochi, the Russian city that gained international attention and endless critique during the 2014 Olympics, is the subject of a new exhibition at Aperture Gallery in New York. The popular depiction in U.S. press of Sochi during the Olympics was that the city was an endless comedy of errors for Western visitors, a place of inevitable misunderstanding in its jarring combination of attitudes and perspectives, and perhaps a contemporary manifestation of one of Italo Calvino’s Invisible Cities. Rob Hornstra and Arnold van Bruggen have traveled to Sochi frequently since 2009, producing installments of their collaborative documentation both online and in book form; Hornstra produces photographs, collects images, and amasses other visual elements as representations of the city, while van Bruggen documents the experience through written accounts. The exhibition presents the striking results of Hornstra’s photographic explorations in Sochi.
The gallery hosts a public reception June 4, from 7 – 8:30 pm.
Rob Hornstra, The Ballroom, Pitsunda, Abkhazia, 2010. Courtesy of Aperture Foundation.
A book published by Aperture in 2013 and titled “The Sochi Project: An Atlas of War and Tourism in the Caucasus” brings together the various projects the artists have undertaken in Sochi. Two book signings will take place during the course of the exhibition; the book signing at Aperture Gallery on June 3 follows a conversation with the artists. Rob Hostra will also host a two-day workshop (May 31 & June 1) for photographers and storytellers on developing long-term photographic projects. You can find more information about these events on the Aperture Gallery website.
Rob Hornstra, Olga, Sochi, Russia, 2012. Courtesy of Aperture Foundation.
The exhibition will remain on view through July 10.
Recent SFAQ Picks:
–SFAQ Pick: “Off Shore” at Southern Exposure, San Francisco. Opening May 28.
