Contemporary Figurative Photography
CONTEMPORARY STYLE
Used to refer to a time rather than an aesthetic, Contemporary art generally describes pieces created after 1970 or being made by living artists anywhere in the world. This immediacy means it encompasses art responding to the present moment through diverse subjects, media and themes. Contemporary painting, sculpture, photography, performance, digital art, video and more frequently includes work that is attempting to reshape current ideas about what art can be, from Felix Gonzalez-Torres’s use of candy to memorialize a lover he lost to AIDS-related complications to Jenny Holzer’s ongoing “Truisms,” a Conceptual series that sees provocative messages printed on billboards, T-shirts, benches and other public places that exist outside of formal exhibitions and the conventional “white cube” of galleries.
Contemporary art has been pushing the boundaries of creative expression for years. Its disruption of the traditional concepts of art are often aiming to engage viewers in complex questions about identity, society and culture. In the latter part of the 20th century, contemporary movements included Land art, in which artists like Robert Smithson and Michael Heizer create large-scale, site-specific sculptures, installations and other works in soil and bodies of water; Sound art, with artists such as Christian Marclay and Susan Philipsz centering art on sonic experiences; and New Media art, in which mass media and digital culture inform the work of artists such as Nam June Paik and Rafaël Rozendaal.
The first decades of the 21st century have seen the growth of Contemporary African art, the revival of figurative painting, the emergence of street art and the rise of NFTs, unique digital artworks that are powered by blockchain technology.
Major Contemporary artists practicing now include Ai Weiwei, Cecily Brown, David Hockney, Yayoi Kusama, Jeff Koons, Takashi Murakami and Kara Walker.
Find a collection of Contemporary prints, photography, paintings, sculptures and other art on 1stDibs.
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Style: Contemporary
Artist: Stefanie Schneider
Something Today (The Girl behind the White Picket Fence)
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Something Today (The Girl Behind the White Picket Fence) -
20x20cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the original Polaroid.
Certificate and Signatur...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
White Picket Fence (The Last Picture Show)
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
White Picket Fence (The Last Picture Show) - 2006,
20x20cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the original Polaroid. Certificate and Signature labe...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
It
s gonna be ok (Till Death do us Part) - 21st Century, Polaroid, Color
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
It's gonna be ok (Till Death do us Part) - 2008
40x48cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the Polaroid,
Certificate and Signature label.
Artist Inve...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
From Now On (The Last Picture Show)
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
From Now On (The Last Picture Show) - 2005,
50x49cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the original Polaroid. Certificate and Signature label.
Art...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
The Pursuit of Happiness - including the book
A Half Forgotten Dream
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
The Pursuit of Happiness (29 Palms, CA) - 2009
including Stefanie Schneider's new monograph "A Half Forgotten Dream" signed. 192 pages, hardcover, published by Snap Collective, 2024...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
A lonely and deserted Place (The Girl behind the White Picket Fence) - Polaroid
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
A lonely and deserted Place (The Girl behind the White Picket Fence) - 2013,
80x80cm,
Edition 2/5.
Analog C-Print, hand-printed by the artist on printed on Fuji Archive Paper,
ba...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Loading the Gun (Wastelands) hand printed analog C-Print, based on a Polaroid
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Loading the Gun (Wastelands) - 2003
57x56cm,
Edition of 5,
analog C-Print, hand-printed by the artist on Fuji Crystal Archive Paper,
based on the Polaroid, Artist inventory Number...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Renée
s Dream - Jules and Jim X - 29 Palms, CA
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
'Jules and Jim X' (Renée's Dream) from the 29 Palms, CA series - 2007
50x49cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print based on the Polaroid.
Certificate and signat...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Flight of Stairs II - featuring Naomi Watts - Polaroid, 21st Century
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Stefanie Schneider's work was used for Marc Forster's movie 'Stay', featuring Ewan McGregor, Naomi Watts and Ryan Gosling. Naomi and Ryan were both portraying artists and Stefanie Sc...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Fall (The Last Picture Show)
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Fall (The Last Picture Show) - 2006,
50x49cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the original Polaroid. Certificate and Signature label.
Artist Inv...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Honey, I love you (Till Death do us Part) - 21st Century, Polaroid, Color
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Honey, I love you (Till Death do us Part) - 2007
20x24cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the Polaroid.
Certificate and Signature label.
Artist In...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Hereafter (The Last Picture Show)
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Hereafter (The Last Picture Show) - 2005,
50x49cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the original Polaroid. Certificate and Signature label.
Artis...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Renée
s Dream - The Boys (Days of Heaven) - Landscape, Horse, Boys
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Renée's Dream - The Boys (Days of Heaven). Part of the 29 Palms, CA project. - 2006
50x50cm,
Edition of 10, plus 2 Artist Proofs,
archival C-Print, based on the Polaroid.
Signatur...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Blue Pool (Suburbia) - Contemporary, Polaroid, Analog, Portrait
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Blue Pool (Suburbia) 2004
50x49cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print based on the Polaroid.
Signature label and Certificate.
Not mounted.
The project "Subur...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
$420 Sale Price
40% Off
Dusting (The Girl behind the White Picket Fence) - Polaroid, Contemporary, Color
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Dusting (The Girl Behind the White Picket Fence) - 2013
with Heather Megan Christie
20x20cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the Polaroid.
Certif...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Happiness (Suburbia) - with Radha Mitchell - Contemporary, Polaroid
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Happiness (Suburbia) - 2004
28x37cm,
Edition of 10,
Archival C-Print based on the Polaroid.
Signature label with Certificate,
Not mounted.
Artist Inventory # 1706.
The works of S...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Three Girls II (The Last Picture Show)
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Three Girls II (The Last Picture Show) - 2006,
50x49cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the original Polaroid. Certificate and Signature label.
...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid, Archival Paper
Nipple - Bathtime III (29 Palms, CA) based on a Polaroid
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Nipple - Bathtime IV (29 Palms, CA)
1999, 40x40cm, Edition 1/10,
Analog C-Print, hand-printed by the artist, based on a Polaroid.
Signature label and Certificate.
Artist inventory ...
Category
1990s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Memories of Green I, triptych, analog, hand printed, Polaroid
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Memories of Green I, triptych, - 2003
Edition of 5,
each 58x56cm, installed with gaps 58x178cm,
analog C-Print, hand-printed by the artist on Fuji Crystal Archive Paper,
based on ...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Skywhale (Stay) - Polaroid, 21st Century, Contemporary, Color
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Stefanie Schneider's work was used for Marc Forster's movie 'Stay'. Featuring Ewan McGregor, Naomi Watts and Ryan Gosling. Naomi and Ryan were both portraying artists and Stefanie's ...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Irresistible (Strange Love) - Polaroid, Contemporary
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Irresistible (Strange Love) - 2007 -
48x60cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the Polaroid.
Signature label and certificate.
Artist Inventory N...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
$570 Sale Price
40% Off
Headless (Stay) featuring Ewan McGregor
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Headless (Stay) - 2006
featuring Ewan McGregor
20x20cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the original Polaroid.
Certificate and Signature label.
Artist Inventory #5084.
Not mounted.
Torsten Scheid, “Fotografie, Kunst, Kino. Revisited.”, FilmDienst 3/2006, page 11-13
Photography Art Cinema. Revisited
Stay expands a traditional connection through new facets
Interwoven between the media of photography and film is a veritable mesh-work of technical, motific, metaphorical and personal interrelationships. Extending from photo-film which, as in La Jetée by Chris Marker (France, 1962) is a montage of single, unmoving photographs all the way to the portrayal of photographic motifs in Hollywood cinema―most recently in Memento (USA, 2000) and One hour photo (USA, 2002)―is the range of filmic-photographic interactions on the one hand, and from the adaption of modes of cinematic production to the imitation of film stills on the other. For instance, with the legendary Untitled Film Stills (1978) of the American artist Cindy Sherman, who later made her debut as a film director with Office Killer (USA, 1997) and thereby, like many others, changed sides: Wim Wenders, Robert Frank and Larry Clark are doubtlessly the most successful of these photographic-filmic border crossers. This brief survey provides only a vague indication of the dimensions of this intermedial field, which in fact extends much further and is constantly being cultivated.
Also as a motif in film, photography has experienced a historical transformation: Photographers were once considered to be technicians who mastered a craft but never achieved the status of artists. Photographer-figures were caught in the allure of beautiful appearance, incapable of penetrating to the actual essence of things. Such depth was reserved for literature or painting. When photography in film touched upon the sphere of art, then most often as its contrasting model, as the metaphor for a superficial access to the world. Coming to mind are Fred Astaire as a singing fashion photographer in Stanley Donen’s musical film Funny Face (USA, 1957), or the restless lifestyle-photographer in Michelangelo Antonioni’s genre-classic Blow up (GB, 1966). For the doubting Thomas, only that exists which can be photographed. He ultimately enters the world of fantasy and thereby the field of art only unwillingly, when he becomes entangled in the world of his images. The last of his detail-enlargements shows only the photographic grain and has lost all connection to reality. The photograph looks as if it had been painted by Bill, the painter who is both friend and antagonist to the protagonist.
Photography as Art
It was first around the end of the last century that numerous filmmakers discovered photography as a genuine art form. In The Bridges of Madison County (USA, 1995) a sensitive Clint Eastwood stands, camera in hand, on the threshold of artistic status, and in Smoke (USA, 1994) a tobacco merchant ripens into a philosopher through his involvement in photography. Finally, in John Water’s parody of the art market, Pecker (USA, 1998), a provincial tom-fool is hyped into celebrated stardom amid the New York art scene because of his blurred snapshots. This film about a postmodern Kaspar Hauser in photographic art (with clear parallels to Richard Billingham, the British shooting...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
C Print, Color, Polaroid, Archival Paper, Photographic Paper
Love (Chicks and Chicks and sometimes Cocks) - Contemporary, Polaroid
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Love (Chicks and Chicks and sometimes Cocks) - 2018
20x20cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the Polaroid.
Signature label and Certificate.
Artis...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Matilda (Chicks and Chicks and sometimes Cocks)
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Matilda (Chicks and Chicks and sometimes Cocks) - 2019
50x49cm,
Edition of 10. plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the original Polaroid.
Artist inventory 22234.
Sign...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
$420 Sale Price
40% Off
Small Town Love - Contemporary, 21st Century, Polaroid, Portrait, Color
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
'Small Town Love' (Last Picture Show), 2006, 20x20cm, Edition 3/10.
Digital C-Print, based on a Polaroid, Certificate and Signature label, artist Inventory No 1029.15,
not mounted
...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Alphabet Soup (Till Death do us Part) - mounted
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Alphabet Soup (Till Death do us Part) - 2005,
128x127cm,
Edition 2/5,
analog C-Print, hand-printed by the artist. based on the Polaroid.
Artist Inventory No. 9283.02.
Mounted o...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Metal
Feather
s Touch (Chicks and Chicks and sometimes Cocks) - Polaroid
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Feather's Touch (Chicks and Chicks)
Edition of 10,
50x50cm.
Lambda Print based on the Polaroid.
Artist inventory 21313B.
Signature label and Certificate.
Not mounted.
The works ...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Womb - Contemporary, Figurative, Woman, 21st Century, Polaroid, photograph, life
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Womb #02 - 2006,
56x55cm, Edition 2/5,
Analog C-Print, printed by hand by the artist on Fuji Archive Crystal Paper.
Based on a Polaroid
Certificate and Signature label
artist In...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Penny Lane and Dreamgirl (Chicks and Chicks and sometimes Cocks) - Polaroid
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Penny Lane and Dreamgirl (Chicks and Chicks and sometimes Cocks) - 2019
20x24cm, Edition of 10.
Digital C-Print, based on a Polaroid.
Artist inventory 19139.
Signature label and Cer...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Boccia III (Beachshoot ) with Radha Mitchell -Polaroid, Contemporary, Women
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Boccia III (Beachshoot) - 2005
38x36cm,
Edition of 10.
Archival C-Print, based on the Polaroid.
Certificate and Signature label.
Artist Inventory # 1467.
Not mounted.
featuring C...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Haley and the Bird Man (Haley and the Birds) - Polaroid, 21st Century, analog
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Haley and the Bird Man (Haley and the Birds) - 2013
from the 29 Palms, CA Project
4 pieces 70x90cm installed, 30x40cm each.
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs,.
4 archival C-Prin...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Renée
s Dream XV (Days of Heaven) - Landscape, Horse, Polaroid, 21st Century
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Renée's Dream XV (Days of Heaven) - 2006
Part of the 29 Palms, CA project.
Edition of 10,
50x50cm,
Archival C-Print, based on the Polaroid.
Signature label and certificate.
Art...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Caring (Chicks and Chicks and sometimes Cocks)
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Caring (Chicks and Chicks and sometimes Cocks)
Edition 1/10, 20x20cm, 2019.
Digital C-Print, based on a Polaroid.
Signature label and Certificate.
Not mounted.
The 'Chicks and Ch...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Untitled - Oilfields
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
'Untitled' by Stefanie Schneider
(Oilfields) 2004,
60x60cm,
Edition of 10, Analog C-Print, based on the Polaroid
Certificate and Signature label
artist Inventory Nr. 1215.05
Not mo...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper, C Print, Polaroid
Wind Power (California Badlands) - Polaroid, Contemporary, Desert, Dream
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Wind Power (California Badlands) - 2021
24x34cm,
Edition of 10,
Archival C-Print, based on the Polaroid.
Certificate and Signature label.
Artist Inventory No. 4595.
Not mounte...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
A Man and a Woman - abstract in bathroom (Sidewinder) - Polaroid, 21st Century
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
A Man and a Woman - abstract in bathroom (Sidewinder), triptych - 2005
Edition of 10, installed 20x70cm including gaps, 20x20cm each.
Digital C-Print, based on a Polaroid.
Artist In...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Boccia VII (Beachshoot ) with Radha Mitchell -Polaroid, Contemporary, Women
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Boccia VII (Beachshoot) - 2005
38x36cm, Edition of 10.
Digital C-Print, based on a Polaroid.
Certificate and Signature label.
Artist Inventory # 1467.
Not mounted.
featuring Camil...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Planet of the Apes XI - Polaroid, Color, Nude, Men, Contemporary
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Planet of the Apes XI, 1999,
Edition 1/10, 40x40cm,
Signature label and Certificate.
not mounted,
Stefanie Schneider received her MFA in Communication Design at the Folkwang Schul...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Bates Motel
part 1 - Contemporary, Figurative, Polaroid
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
'Bates Motel' part 1 (The Last Picture Show) - 2005,
38x36cm,
Edition 2/5,
analog C-Print, hand-printed and enlarged by the artist on Fuji Crystal Archive Paper, matte finish,
b...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Boy with Silver Mask (Stay)
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Boy with Silver Mask (Stay) - 2006
37x36cm,
Edition of 30,
Archival C-Print, based on a Polaroid.
Certificate and Signature label
artist Inventory #5606.
Not mounted.
Torsten ...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Haley and the Bird Man (Haley and the Birds) - Polaroid, 21st Century, analog
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Haley and the Bird Man (Haley and the Birds) - 2013
105x100cm,
Edition of 5,
analog C-Print, hand-printed by the artist on Crystal Fuji Archive Paper, matte surface,
based on a P...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Homesteading (Heavenly Falls) - Polaroid, Contemporary, 21st Century, Color
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Homesteading (Heavenly Falls)
2016, 50x50cm, Edition 2/10,
digital C-Print based on a Polaroid.
Certificate and signature label.
Artist inventory number: 19655.02
Not mounted
S...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Pool at Night (Suburbia) - Contemporary, Polaroid
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Pool at Night (Suburbia) 2004, 50x50cm, Edition of of 10, digital C-Print based on an expired Polaroid.
Signature label with Certificate, unmounted.
The project "Suburbia" was shot...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Ryan Gosling - Stay
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
'Ryan Gossling' (Stay) - 2006,
20x20cm, Edition of 2/10,
digital C-Print, based on a Polaroid
Certificate and Signature label
artist Inventory No. 2447.02
Not mounted.
Stefanie Schneider:
Torsten Scheid, “Fotografie, Kunst, Kino. Revisited.”, FilmDienst 3/2006, page 11-13
Photography Art Cinema. Revisited
Stay expands a traditional connection through new facets
Interwoven between the media of photography and film is a veritable mesh-work of technical, motific, metaphorical and personal interrelationships. Extending from photo-film which, as in La Jetée by Chris Marker (France, 1962) is a montage of single, unmoving photographs all the way to the portrayal of photographic motifs in Hollywood cinema―most recently in Memento (USA, 2000) and One hour photo (USA, 2002)―is the range of filmic-photographic interactions on the one hand, and from the adaption of modes of cinematic production to the imitation of film stills on the other. For instance, with the legendary Untitled Film Stills (1978) of the American artist Cindy Sherman, who later made her debut as a film director with Office Killer (USA, 1997) and thereby, like many others, changed sides: Wim Wenders, Robert Frank and Larry Clark are doubtlessly the most successful of these photographic-filmic border crossers. This brief survey provides only a vague indication of the dimensions of this intermedial field, which in fact extends much further and is constantly being cultivated.
Also as a motif in film, photography has experienced a historical transformation: Photographers were once considered to be technicians who mastered a craft but never achieved the status of artists. Photographer-figures were caught in the allure of beautiful appearance, incapable of penetrating to the actual essence of things. Such depth was reserved for literature or painting. When photography in film touched upon the sphere of art, then most often as its contrasting model, as the metaphor for a superficial access to the world. Coming to mind are Fred Astaire as a singing fashion photographer in Stanley Donen’s musical film Funny Face (USA, 1957), or the restless lifestyle-photographer in Michelangelo Antonioni’s genre-classic Blow up (GB, 1966). For the doubting Thomas, only that exists which can be photographed. He ultimately enters the world of fantasy and thereby the field of art only unwillingly, when he becomes entangled in the world of his images. The last of his detail-enlargements shows only the photographic grain and has lost all connection to reality. The photograph looks as if it had been painted by Bill, the painter who is both friend and antagonist to the protagonist.
Photography as Art
It was first around the end of the last century that numerous filmmakers discovered photography as a genuine art form. In The Bridges of Madison County (USA, 1995) a sensitive Clint Eastwood stands, camera in hand, on the threshold of artistic status, and in Smoke (USA, 1994) a tobacco merchant ripens into a philosopher through his involvement in photography. Finally, in John Water’s parody of the art market, Pecker (USA, 1998), a provincial tom-fool is hyped into celebrated stardom amid the New York art scene because of his blurred snapshots. This film about a postmodern Kaspar Hauser in photographic art (with clear parallels to Richard Billingham, the British shooting star of the nineteen-nineties), not only takes into account the exponentially expanded significance of photography in the art market, but also attributes to photography an extreme degree of conformity to the “operating system” of the visual arts. This admittedly ironic equation of photography and the visual arts is new. It is repeated with much more earnestness in Lisa Chollondencko’s High Art (USA) from the same year. Artistic photography has finally become established in a cinematic context.
Stay
Stay (USA, 2005) could have fitted in seamlessly here. Considering that the films High Art and Pecker establish photography as an ideal art form at the end of the millennium, director Marc Forster (Monster’s Ball, Finding Neverland) takes a step backward; he revives an anti-technical, intuitive concept of art, including the customary clichés about madness and genius. This choice documents less an anachronistic notion of art (especially considering that painting is currently experiencing a Renaissance) than instead the appraisal that paintings are more suitable for representing the free objectification of the mind. Stay is not an artist-film but rather a psycho-thriller in which the borders between dream and reality become blurred.
The psychiatrist Sam Foster (Ewan McGregor) has saved his girlfriend, the artist Lila (played by Naomi Watts) from committing suicide. Now he is attempting to keep another patient, the art student Henry Letham (Ryan Gosling...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
C Print, Color, Polaroid
If I could fly (Chicks and Chicks and sometimes Cocks)
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
If I could fly (Chicks and Chicks and sometimes Cocks) - 2017
50x50cm, Edition of 10.
Digital C-Print, based on a Polaroid.
Artist inventory 20058.
Signature label and Certificate.
...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
A sunny Morning II (The Girl behind the White Picket Fence_ - Polaroid
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
A sunny Moring II (The Girl behind the White Picket Fence)
2013, 20x24cm, Edition 9/10,digital C-Print, based on an expired Polaroid.
Certificate and Signature label.
Artist Inventor...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper, C Print, Polaroid
Bishop, CA (Strange Love) - Polaroid, Contemporary
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Bishop, CA (Strange Love) diptych - 2005
2 Archival C-Prints, based on two Polaroids.
40x105 installed, 40x50cm each.
Signature label and certificate, artist Inventory No. 9930.
...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
For Members only (Suburbia) - with Radha Mitchell - Contemporary, Polaroid
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
For Members only (Suburbia) - 2004
28x37cm,
Edition of 10,
digital C-Print based on the Polaroid.
Signature label with Certificate,
Not mounted.
Artist Inventory # 400.
THE GREA...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
On Hold - The Girl behind the White Picket Fence
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
'On Hold' (The Girl behind the White Picket Fence) - 2013
98x97cm,
Edition of 5,
analog C-Print, hand-printed by the artist, based on the Polaroid
Certificate and Signature label
a...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Lila
s Studio (Stay) - Polaroid, 21st Century, Contemporary, Color
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Stefanie Schneider's work was used for Marc Forster's movie 'Stay'. Featuring Ewan McGregor, Naomi Watts and Ryan Gosling. Naomi and Ryan were both portraying artists and Stefanie's ...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
When we were friends II (Suburbia) - Contemporary, Polaroid
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
When we were friends (Suburbia) - 2004
28x37cm,
Edition of 10,
digital C-Print based on the Polaroid.
Signature label with Certificate,
unmounted.
The project "Suburbia" was shot...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Caitlin aka Jane Bond III Heavenly Falls - based on a Polaroid Original
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
'Caitlin aka Jane Bond III' (Heavenly Falls) - 2016
20x20cm,
Edition of 10,
Archival C-Print based on the Polaroid,
Not mounted.
Certificate and signature label,
artist inventor...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
C Print, Color, Polaroid
Oregon (Strange Love) - Polaroid, Contemporary
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Oregon (Strange Love) - 2007
40x50cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the Polaroid.
Signature label and certificate.
Artist Inventory No. 9916. ...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Aimless (Wastelands), triptych, analog, mounted - Polaroid, 21st Century, Color
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Aimless - It all began quite simply I was very happy - (Wastelands), triptych - 2003
Edition 2/5,
57 x 56 cm each, installed 57 x 180cm,
3 analog C-Prints, hand-printed by the art...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Metal
Lila
s Studio II (Stay) Naomi Watts- Polaroid, 21st Century, Contemporary, Color
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Stefanie Schneider's work was used for Marc Forster's movie 'Stay'. Featuring Ewan McGregor, Naomi Watts and Ryan Gosling. Naomi and Ryan were both portraying artists and Stefanie's ...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Three Girls VII (The Last Picture Show)
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Three Girls VII (The Last Picture Show) - 2006,
20x20cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the original Polaroid.
Certificate and Signature label.
...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Three Girls VI (The Last Picture Show)
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Three Girls VI (The Last Picture Show) - 2006,
20x20cm,
Edition of 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the original Polaroid.
Certificate and Signature label.
A...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid, Archival Paper
Austen in front of Trailer (Till Death do us Part)
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Austen in front of Trailer (Till Death Do Us Part) - 2005
80x79cm,
Edition 10 plus 2 Artist Proofs.
Archival C-Print, based on the original Polaroid.
Certificate and Signature...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Max in Pool - Contemporary, Landscape, Figurative, expired, Polaroid, analog
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Max in Pool (29 Palms, CA) - 1999
Edition 3/10,
48x46cm,
Analog C-Print, hand-printed by the artist on Fuji Crystal Archive Paper, based on a Polaroid.
Signature label and certi...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Cherry Tree Blossoms (Till Death do us Part) - Polaroid, 21st Cetury, Women
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
'Cherry Tree Blossoms' (Till Death do us Part), 2006,
50x50cm each, installed 50x110cm,
Edition 1/10, digital C-Prints, based on the 2 Polaroids,
Certificate and Signature label, ...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Figurative Photography
Materials
Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
Contemporary figurative photography for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Contemporary figurative photography available for sale on 1stDibs. Works in this style were very popular during the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artists have continued to produce works inspired by this movement. If you’re looking to add figurative photography created in this style to introduce contrast in an otherwise neutral space in your home, the works available on 1stDibs include elements of green, yellow, orange, blue and other colors. Many Pop art paintings were created by popular artists on 1stDibs, including Tyler Shields, Brian Finke, Stefanie Schneider, and David Drebin. Frequently made by artists working with Polaroid, and Paper and other materials, all of these pieces for sale are unique and have attracted attention over the years. Not every interior allows for large Contemporary figurative photography, so small editions measuring 3.04 inches across are also available. Prices for figurative photography made by famous or emerging artists can differ depending on medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $110 and tops out at $40,000, while the average work sells for $701.
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