Ektopia

3000th post on Ektopia…gulp!

I would love to say that I had heard of Nick Veasey before I stumbled across his new book recently but I can’t. The glossy black cover with the all too familiar negative imagery of an x-ray stared out at me; not because it was an ordinary x-ray but because it was an x-ray of a digger! In an almost reflex action, I had snatched up the book and was studying the image while simultaneously trying to work out what was going on. Was it some kind of computer generated shenanigans? I assumed so and to be honest this would normally be the kind of realisation that had me placing the book back down and shiftily searching for the Roy Stuart section! However, something here was different. Even though everything was saying “false” the sectional image of the digger showed so much depth and texture that I had to look on (Roy Stuart was completely forgotten about…at least for this particular visit to the book shop!). So, I looked onward and inward and you know what? The images within are all real! Yes!

X-Ray published by Goodman (one of Carlton Books’ imprints) is Nick’s personal journey into artistic x-rayism (maybe that’s not a proper word but it works for me!). However, what’s so exciting about all of this is that the journey’s not only included standard x-ray techniques but also the esoteric world of security scanning tackle!

So, it’s a book of x-ray images then? Well, yes and no. Well…yeas and yes I guess but that doesn’t really tell the whole story. The images themselves are all, without exception, beautiful in every way. They are all very punchy and elegantly composed. Added to that is that the majority of pages show two separate, but, juxtaposed, images during the first section, which is dedicated to objects. Sometimes these are based on pairs of objects with similar shapes such as an ice cream cone and a Christmas tree. Other times the relation is more lateral like the comparison between one of those fancy Herman Miller Aeron chairs (which I would be much more at home on as I type this very review thank you very much dear Herman Miller Aeron Chair Donor!) and an electric chair (which I most certainly have no other interest in beyond movies and this book thank you very much Mr Executioner!). And again I must remind you that these are x-rays so you’re not looking skin-deep here but the complex anatomy of each of these chosen object (and regular Ektopians will know how much I like the anatomy of almost anything as well as inside out stuff). Another one of my favourite images is an all rubber and plastic gas-mask alongside a glass and metal bottle of perfume; another perfect match. It’s these initial 70 pages that do it for me and I could happily go on viewing more and more of the same. I could also have had the book end here and been a happy x-ray voyeur too but no, the book goes on from here changing direction slightly; on to The Body.

This section is full of images that are much more familiar to me with my healthcare background. However, the majority of these images, while normal, have been given a dramatic edge. This effect has been enhanced in some of the images by overlaying semi-translucent photos to help train the eye into what’s really going on while other images in this section are seriously large. These are perhaps the most intense images in the book. You don’t need to be told that these are made from multiple x-rays or how many hours (well days and months actually) that these have taken to piece together. You’ll see them and know that they are almost incomprehensible. Whether it’s a bus load of people, a sectional x-ray of a whole building (complete with the boss sitting on his backside reading a paper on the top floor and an office worker trying to fix a paper-jam in the photo copier on the ground floor!) or a Boeing 777. Not content with x-raying the 777, Veasey also x-rayed the hanger just for fun to create the world’s largest x-ray. Astonishing.

Nature is next up with some of the most gentle images in the book. The flowers in particular are love fluid on stalks and even like strange sea-creatures at times. They nearly all look like they are underwater and much more elegant than you could imagine. As for creatures, there are also a whole host of these too. The most impressive being the remnants of the creatures, such as the array of shells that almost look like they’ve been computer generated…but of course, they’ve not.

Fashion takes the stand towards the end of the book and is an alternative look at textiles. There are some obvious images such as random items of clothing to an under-wired bra (well I think it’s obvious but I’ve been told I have a one track mind!). However, there are also some more of those great jutaposed images here too. The best of these has to be a high heel with it’s skeletal wearer that’s mirrored by a guys foot in a size dozen work boot. Great stuff.

The back of the book hosts the index that shows a thumbnail of each individual image alongside a paragraph on how it was made or the idea behind the imagery or a simple or amusing story behind the process. It’s a perfect way to end the book for me as I hate to be left guessing about stuff. I think it could well be my favourite book of the year so far. X-Ray weighs in at 224 pages and is hardback 28 x 23 edition. It’s available direct from Goodman/Carlton and all the usual places including Amazon UK