Merry Go Round
2005
Print, 89 x 59 cm.
Materials: lambda print
Collection: Collection M HKA, Antwerp (Inv. no. UFO_081).
Merry Go Round is a photograph (edition of 100 prints) of a merry-go-round on a funfair. Contrary to our expecations, there is no trace of yelling, laughing or waving children, nor of their watchful parents, who usually circle around the merry-go-round. The desolate atmosphere this photograph emanates is typical for Op de Beeck's work. Op de Beeck never shows the moment in which something happens, but always the moment just before or just afterwards. Because of the complete lack of human presences, his images appear completely still, as if frozen in time. Op de Beeck invites us to think about the way in which we experience time and which elements influence our perception of time. At the same time, his work betrays the artist's distinct fascination for society - for human presence and absence in the space surrounding us.
