Cutter

A man at a table. A camera is mounted on his head. Another camera is hanging above the table. A book of photos lies open on the table. With a sharp instrument he cuts pieces out of the photos: glaciers, sea-beds, natural panoramas, flowers, plants, animals, all things that might be threatened with extinction or have already become extinct. The Italian artist Cristian Chironi dissects images and structures and creates new and contrasting relationships. We look in fascination and astonishment at the wonders of the Earth, from Robinson Crusoe’s Deserted Island to the Equatorial Forest, from deserts to mountain ranges, from the perfect design of flowers and plants to nature’s explosions of sound. Is it necessary to add any textual explanation to these images? Chironi wants the viewer to have the same reaction as to a perfect masterpiece of art, because he wonders whether we aren’t all tourists looking at the Himalayas with a cheeseburger in our hands.

• Cristian Chironi lives in Bologna. He works in several media, including photography, video, drawing, live actions and site-specific interventions.