designboom · Creativity & design

Carsten Höller's Artful Games Captured by Giant Polaroid Camera

A new documentary follows artist Carsten Höller over 18 months, using the world's largest instant camera to document his unique approach to art and human interaction.

The film, "The Carsten Höller Episode of The 20×24 Project," captures Höller from Venice to London and Basel. He is joined by figures like Hans Ulrich Obrist and Jürgen Teller, engaging in simple games from his "Book of Games." These activities, ranging from pulling hair to posing, serve as experiments to observe reactions when participants agree to play.

The giant Polaroid 20x24 camera, producing 20x24 inch prints, transforms instant photography into a significant event. The project generates a collection of large-scale portraits alongside the film, capturing fleeting moments at an unusual size.

The documentary explores Höller's personal world, including his aviary in Stockholm and his concept restaurant. It also features a 'sad bird'-watching expedition in France.

Höller has long used games to disrupt normal behavior and perception. His "Book of Games," published in 2024, provides instructions for social, psychological, and humorous experiments designed to explore the space between opposing states like joy and fear.

AI-samenvatting op basis van de bron.