Saturday, June 1, 2013

photography of Gabor Szilasi

this is a postcard of one of my favourite photographers, sent to Violet in Finland. Apart from the grand sweeping staircase, I love how he has captured the texture of the wall.
Gabor is known for his architectural and street scene photography as well as informal portraiture. Most have been taken in his adopted home of Montreal and his native home of Budapest.

Everything is constantly changing around us: what my camera captures at this moment is already of the past. That is why it is important to me to record the world as I see it today through photography. I am not interested in the past or the future: I am interested in the present. Through the photographic image, I can directly record the signs of the past and the future as they appear in this moment.”
— Gabor Szilasi, 1977

you can see more photos and read up on his biography and influences here






Escalier, Lörinc tér 2, 8e arrondissement, Budapest, sept.-oct. 1995_Musée canadien de la photographie contemporaine, Ottawa_Gabor Szilasi, 2009


so I was pleased to see that he was featured in the first of a new series of stamps celebrating photography,
the image chosen for the stamp is of Andor Pasztor, a friend of his father. this was taken during a period when he created diptychs with a black and white photo of the sitter and a colour photo of the room in which the photo was taken.

I am a little disappointed that this stamp is perhaps the weakest of the series 
in that it is more difficult to see the image. all the stamps are the same size - 30mm x 36mm
Gabor Szilasi was born in Budapest and left Hungary in 1957 to eventually settle in Montreal.

17 comments:

  1. that last shot....it's like looking at life and death side by side...very odd feeling.

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    1. it is a bit creepy, isn't it?
      I believe he is looking out the window.
      really, I think there are so many better photos they could have chosen.

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    2. I agree. Even from a design standpoint, this stamp is just not very attractive.

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  2. That is an interesting juxtaposition, the bare walls behind the sitter contrasting with the claustrophobic collection of life above the sideboard. It does seem a strange choice but it is definitely unique.

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  3. I think it goes well with the postcard though. One older staircase - - one older man, they both are artistic looking :D

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  4. Beautiful postcard. I love photos of staircases and other architectural features.

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  5. I like the photo of the staircase. I don't think the photography looks good on the stamp.

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  6. I tilted my head to the right, stared at the stamp, tilted to the left and stared at the stamp again...I think it's trying to convey an emotion and not just featuring a sample shot of the photographer. Just my thought.

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  7. It took me a while to realise I was looking at a stamp.

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  8. Love the staircase! The stamps is really interesting, it's good that it makes us think about it.

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  9. You have a very detailed scan of the stamp, so that you can see everything going on in the two photos....
    Thank you for participating!

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    Replies
    1. it took several tries to get it this detailed and clear, let me tell you!!

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  10. I quite like the stamp though I'm not sure how well it would show up on the small size it must be.

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  11. Love the look of that staircase, and pretty stamp!

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  12. What a cool way to honor someone's talent by featuring them on a stamp.

    Willa @ The Postage Journal: My Sunday Stamp#57

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  13. I like the photo of the staircase. The stamps is really interesting, it's good that it makes us think about it.
    Ron Gallemore Torrance

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