Marbre

In 2000, photographer J\'e9r\'f4me Schlomoff started using a self-made pinhole camera for his 35mm films. This lensless camera works by allowing light to pass through a tiny hole into an otherwise light-sealed box and onto the film. Schlomoff has made two "pinhole films" over the last two years, both of them portraits of artists. One focuses on the Frenchman Marc Couturier who, like Schlomoff, has a predilection for playing with light and dark; the other film is about the Dutchman Henri Plaat. These two works are companion pieces. Both are intended as portraits, but each achieves its aim in a unique way. In \i Marbre\i0 , only the artist's hands and arms are briefly visible. Couturier gives a kind of performance in which he either removes sheets from two enormous stacks of his work or transfers them from one stack to the other. There are a total of 375 images. The artist himself remains out of view, but this stringing together of his work gives him form. Does this amount to a portrait, or do we need a photograph of a face? If it is indeed a portrait, then it is a temporary one that ceases to exist when the performance is over.