Scans by Katerina Jebb

Artist Katerina Jebb has proved that the medium of scanning is another language which does not belong to photography in the general sense. It’s through these human scans in her film, showcasing her recent projects, that we see this. 

Purple – What is your language in photography?

Katerina Jebb – Primarily camera-less photography. I often make images with a scanner.

Purple – Can you tell us about these slides and what they represent?

Katerina Jebb – The works here are all human scans which are life-size. I scan the subject many times and then I assemble the high resolution files to form a large composition. The moving images are all recent editorial commissions for Purple, Acne Paper, So Figaro and Vogue Hommes.

Purple – You can see in the last few images (featured in the current issue of Purple Fashion magazine) that you have tried a new approach to the compositions of the images. Are you learning new ways to experiment with the scanner?

Katerina Jebb – Yes and no, the new images are put together in a more haphazard way illustrating the multiple passages. I’ve always alternated between two processes, one showing an obvious map of the person in a linear deconstructed mode and the other by creating a near flawless facsimile of the person or object. Most people have no idea that a one meter fifty square image is made up of 48 different parts because they cannot see the joins. When working with a scanner I just try to find ways to make a portrait of the subject which is true, life-like and compelling. It is true to say that I have made progress as technology has made progress, the recent photographic quality scanner is able to reproduce a heightened document of the subject matter whereas 15 years ago the resulting images were more vague and abstract.

See Katerina Jebb’s work wurrently in the latest issue of Purple Fashion magazine #21 now available to view online here.

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