Variation on a poppy

Flowers have been at the heart of Claudia Mojica Sorbac's work from the very beginning. And with good reason: the artist has made photography the medium of her quest for beauty. Flowers, an ambiguous iconography, have traversed the history of art, carrying with them a host of symbols. Recall the Flemish still lifes of the 17th century and their commercial success, or the sensual flower portraits of Robert Mapplethorpe. They act both as icons of beauty and symbols of imminent death, so quickly do they fade. The slightly off-center framing of the flower and the curves drawn by the stem break with classical tradition, giving the poppy a light, airy dimension. The use of black and white, preventing us from admiring the bright red of the flower, gives it a new light. It's the flower's outline, texture and movement that the viewer is invited to contemplate.