The Studio Sculptures
Jaya Pelupessy plays with the Droste effect. Central is the photographic reproduction process, in particular the analog photo studio and the tools that are being used. Stacked developing reels, placed against and on a mirror, are being captured as sculptures that are bigger in size than the original reels. A softbox, a developing tray and a reflection screen, placed on a pedestal and photographed in black and white, get their own autonomous quality. Their form slightly reminds of a contemporary interpretation of the Neue Sachlichkeit of post World War I, for instance of Albert Renger-Patzch.
In The Studio Sculptures, the pedestal plays an important role. This white object represents an essential attribute in the puristic way of ‘display’ that belongs in the hyper self-conscious viewing space of the white cube. The pedestal has the quality to magically change the status of a modest object into something majestic. By placing to tools of photography on the pedestal, the process itself is literally placed on a pedestal as well. The appearance of the work of Jaya Pelupessy is serious, but it is still tempting to see a slightly ironic wink to the status of photography in fine art.