Carla van de Puttelaar: Adornments

Carla van de Puttelaar opens our awareness to the sensitivity and sensuality of skin. The female body has long been the main subject of her photography, and her models appear poised and aloof, with chilled skin lit by natural light, one of Van de Puttelaars most important tools and assets one which she harnesses with incredible deftness. She also examines the skin and texture of flowers in her Hortus Nocturnum series, particularly those about to fade. Adornments comprises a new collection of photographs, where images of flowers and trees are juxtaposed with the faces and bodies of women, capturing Galateas and Ophelias, conjuring Rembrandt and Maria Austria.

Adornments gives an extensive overview of the works of Carla van de Puttelaar from the past 6 years. The book explores her work by a strong an associative edit, and by using special printing techniques and experimental paper it reflects on one of the key elements of the work of Van de Puttelaar: the skin.

The work allows the eye to touch the skin on many levels. It makes the viewer aware of the sensitivity and the sensuality of skin, which she examines in detail, without ever forgetting to be aware of the importance of the shapes of the structure that the skin envelopes. The female body has long been her main subject, but in recent years she has also successfully begun to examine the skin and texture of flowers, particularly those on the brink of fading. The book shows over 200 works, and also some process images, which give an insight in selection process and the making of the final works.