Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei

The ubiquity and democratization of photography in digital era has elevated its position above cinema, making it “the most important art”, which is why it is increasingly imperative to learn how to think, analyze, and make images to communicate. Hence the significances of the first Steve McCurry solo photography exhibition in Chinese-speaking worlds are two-fold: on the one hand, the McCurry at MOCA, Taipei exhibition connects and engages Taiwan to the discourses of global photography art, on the other hand, the exhibition intervenes, reconsiders and repositions the relationship between McCurry’s photography and contemporary art. Title of the exhibition, ’S Wanderful | Making Pictures, refers to McCurry’s photo journeys around the world, highlighting his fondness for wandering and the profound meanings behind his serendipitous capturing of humanity. The title coinage combines “wander” and “wonder”, suggesting a notion of “no wander no wonder”, while also alludes to the musicality embodied in photography by referencing classic Broadway song, “’S Wonderful”, composed by George Gershwin. McCurry’s photography touches hearts and moves people, his iconic Afghan Girl has inspired people to volunteer and join refugee relief forces, and its impacts are far-reaching and continue to resonate. Memorable photographs impress upon you with indelible imprints of beauty, visualize human experiences by giving life forms, and structuring memories; some iconic works even convey layers of historical depths and contemporary connectedness. McCurry traverses space and time as he transcends different cultures and generations, from a photojournalist to an artist telling stories through images, from the medium of film to the digital. What remains unchanged is how he captures and makes visible human nature and behaviors in poesis. McCurry believes that a portrait should have emotions, tell of the person’s notable features, it must be different, unique and unforgettable, and yet, above all, it must also showcase the universality of humanity. In that regard, McCurry’s photographic aesthetics not only embody philosopher Kant’s aesthetic judgment - sensus communis, the individual sensibility that communicates with all mankind, but also makes him a Kantian photographer par excellence. McCurry’s portraits gaze sharply at you, with looks that seem to come from corners of the universe, transport you through perspectives of eternity - sub specie aeternitatis. Full of Barthesian punctum, the points that trigger involuntary reaction in experiencing each photograph. McCurry’s photography has been exemplifying for decades what art critic Michael Fried tried to theorize, to integrate the absorption and theatricality in photography that juxtapose and combine unconscious emotional pathos with conscious performative ethos. This exhibition consists of three cohering themes about photography: “Making picture”, “Rendering image”, and “Innervating impression”. Twelve installation artworks extend the exhibition space to explore, answer, and challenge issues of photography, art and philosophy, including: What is the essence and sine qua non of photography? What inspires contemporary art that transpires theories and practices in the art history of photography? How would the art of photography elevate aesthetic education and foster creativity? It is our aspiration that McCurry’s pictures in ’S Wanderful | Making Pictures, would make some of the answers and more of the questions apparent while nudging in visual thinking and aesthetic judgment as habit. Through the process of making photography art, our prospectus for visual art will expand beyond the initiating wander. In the movie Vertigo, James Stewart asks Kim Novak to wander together. Novak replies: “One wanders, two are always going somewhere.” Accompanied by McCurry, we would have a better sense of direction for where to wander.