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Imperial Pomp - Post-Soviet High-Rise Frank Herfort travelled all over Russia for a photographic project that lasted several years, following the ideas of architectural photography and taking pictures of skyscrapers that had been quickly built after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The force and magnitude of these buildings appears bizarre, pompous and exotic; equally they evoke larger-than-life Soviet memorials. They express a longing for lost greatness and the ambition to go one better. Contextual contradictions however add another completely different grace note: the Russian residential buildings and faded idylls around the new constructions introduce a second level of meaning to the images, which poses questions and raises enigmas. Nostalgia for Past Grandeur In documenting a unique phenomenon, the German photographer Frank Herfort has journeyed to the most remote areas of the former Soviet Union. After the collapse of the regime, a strangely pompous architectural style sprung up throughout the new republic. It conflates the aesthetics of monumental Soviet architecture with the Western language of form seen in the twentieth century.
Visions of Utopia: Palaces for the Working Class
Photographer Frank Herfort has spent over a decade in Russia, tracing the mystery and myth of the world’s largest country. Following his acclaimed Imperial Pomp: Post-Soviet High-Rise, his latest book alternates between poignant realism and absurd fancies. His photographs of the wondrously surreal post-Soviet world are mesmerizing, cool, and thought provoking but most of all, they are strikingly human. In every image the people, everyday situations, architectures, and events tell their own individual stories. Yet seen together, they weave a fascinating fairy tale with a very contemporary twist.
Like many small Midwestern cities, Baraboo has had the usual share of postcards printed featuring its buildings and landscapes. However, Baraboo's unique place in Wisconsin history provided for a much richer array of subject matter. As the original winter quarters of the Ringling Brothers Circus, along with its proximity to Devil's Lake and its place as a division headquarters for the Chicago & North Western railroad, Baraboo has always provided an interesting setting for postcard images.