hélène binet
'forming | portrait - architecture of zaha hadid'
gabrielle ammann // gallery, cologne
september 21 - november 5, 2010

'maxxi', 2006
© hélène binet
(architecture by zaha hadid)
edition: 3 + 2 AP
digital c-type print
100 x 127 cm
courtesy of gabrielle ammann // gallery, cologne


the gabrielle ammann // gallery in cologne, germany presents the solo-exhibition of photographer
hélène binet entitled, 'forming | portrait - architecture of zaha hadid'. for the last twenty years,
the swiss artist has captured the works of contemporary architects including: david chipperfield,
coop himmelblau, daniel libeskind, sauerbruch hutton and peter zumthor.

one of the first architects whose work binet shot was zaha hadid in the mid-1980s. ever since then,
they have shared an unspoken agreement that the photographer will document both the finished
building as well as the project during construction. in 'forming | portrait', images taken during
these two distinct stages are presented: unfinished buildings are seen as fascinating portraits,
while the formulas, lines, and volumes of completed buildings are examined. all these elements
become a framework for binet in creating a photographic narrative--the making of forms
and their portrait.



'maxxi diptych', 2009
© hélène binet
(architecture by zaha hadid)
edition: 3 + 2 AP
digital b/w silver gelatin print
100 x 127 cm / 127 x 100 cm
courtesy of gabrielle ammann // gallery, cologne

hélène binet on forming:
'my interest in working sites is linked to an investigation of what is behind the extravagant
forms and perfect lines of hadid's architecture; it is an interest in the relation between
the elegance of her gesture and her radical way of making a building. something very
primordial and out of time is present in those situations. I think of this as a process of forming.'

'zaragoza bridge pavilion', 2008
© hélène binet
(architecture by zaha hadid)
edition: 5 + 2 AP
digital b/w silver gelatin print
80 x 102 cm
courtesy of gabrielle ammann // gallery, cologne


hélène binet on portraits:
'on the other end of this process, there are the finished forms which I sometimes portray
at night with sporadic illumination. the obscurity isolates them and the light accentuates
their volumes. my focus is on creating images of the buildings which have a sense of being
unreal and that have a certain autonomy. small and big parts of the building can now
stand on their own and become independent characters.'



'phaeno science center', 2004
© hélène binet
(architecture by zaha hadid)
edition: 3 + 2 AP
digital c-type print
127 x 100 cm
courtesy of gabrielle ammann // gallery, cologne



'phaeno science center diptych', 2003/04
© hélène binet
(architecture by zaha hadid)
edition: 3 + 2 AP
digital c-type printand digital b/w silver gelatin print
100 x 127 cm each
courtesy of gabrielle ammann // gallery, cologne



'rosenthal center for contemporary art', 2003
© hélène binet
(architecture by zaha hadid)
edition: 5 + 2 AP
digital b/w silver gelatin print
80 x 102 cm
courtesy of gabrielle ammann // gallery, cologne



'lfone', 1999
© hélène binet
(architecture by zaha hadid)
edition: 5 + 2 AP
digital b/w silver gelatin print
80 x 102 cm
courtesy of gabrielle ammann // gallery, cologne



'car park & terminus, strasbourg 1', 2002
© hélène binet
(architecture by zaha hadid)
edition: 3 + 2 AP
digital c-type print
150 x 120 cm
courtesy of gabrielle ammann // gallery, cologne


'car park & terminus, strasbourg 2', 2002
© hélène binet
(architecture by zaha hadid)
edition: 5 + 2 AP
digital b/w silver gelatin print
80 x 102 cm
courtesy of gabrielle ammann // gallery, cologne