One of the theme of the Mois de la Photo 2012, “Small is beautiful,” the exhibition "Éloge de la miniature" (In Praise of the Miniature) on view until November 24 at the Galerie Camera Obscura, seems made to measure. The three photographers didn’t need to adapt for the occasion because they have all been working in small formats for years. Was it visionary of Jean-Luc Monterosso to make this a festival theme, after the invasion of gigantic prints that have more to do with decoration than with poetry, intimacy or political commitment? More and more photographers who have something to say are beginning to say it with more friendly-user formats.

The gallery is presenting 90 miniatures, thirty per artist.

Sarah Moon often works in polaroid, an essentially small format. The importance of this show lies in the fact that the photographer has never exhibited her polaroids. Naturally it includes several shots from her fashion photography, but also landscapes and other objects. While most photos are in color, another group is in black and white, and yet another is a chronological and chromatic blend.

Bernard Plossu’s taste for miniatures dates back to the late 1980s. After photographing the vast wide-open spaces of the American west, “he experienced the power these landscapes had when printed in small format.” That is the origin of his taste for miniature image, which has an expression, “just like music played pianissimo, demanding silence and attention.”

For Masao Yamamoto, the miniature is part of the culture of his country, Japan. In the 1980s, he designed the series Box of Ku (conceptually, “an empty box.”) The 1500 photographs in this cycle, untitled and undated, were printed by the artist on various types of paper, but always in the same small format, like a postcard. For these seemingly ageless image-memories, damaged by time and handling, the miniature is naturally the correct format.

Bernard Perrine
Bernard.Perrine1@orange.fr

Exhibition
Éloge de la miniature
Sarah Moon, Bernard Plossu et Masao Yamamoto
As part of the Mois de la Photo 2012 in Paris
Until November 24th, 2012
Galerie Camera Oscura
268, Boulevard Raaspail
75014 Paris - France
+33 (0) 145 45 67 08
Tuesday - Friday 12am - 7pm
Saturday 11am - 7pm

Book Signing Bernard Plossu
On Friday, November 9th, 2012 : 6pm - 9pm