Have we found the person responsible for the accursed phenomenon of the selfie? No, it’s probably a bit harsh to lay the blame at the feet of Friedl Kubelka, but the London-born artist was certainly an innovator of the photographic self-portrait – the big difference between her images and the Instagram-clogging nonsense is that Kubelka’s are actually ones worth looking at.
Raised in East Berlin and Vienna, Kubelka began her most well-known series, Jahreportraits (Year Portraits) in the early 1970s; she photographed herself every day for a year, repeating the process every five years since. Examples of these portraits are being shown at Richard Saltoun Gallery alongside travel snaps and those from the Pin-up series (1971-1974), in which the model’s face is obscured by the camera, the background – especially in the earlier images – often disappears or merges with the woman’s body, and there’s more than a little sauce to the costume. The London gallery is currently hosting Kubelka’s work alongside that of VALIE EXPORT as part of Viennese Season: Feminism; closing date is 23 May.
Friedl Kubelka
Untitled (Pin-up), 1971
Black and white photograph mounted on cardboard
17 x 11.5cm
Friedl Kubelka
Untitled (Pin-up), 1971
Black and white photograph mounted on cardboard
11.8 x 16.6cm
Friedl Kubelka
Reise (Voyage), 1974
Black and white photograph with blue pen
“Aigues-Mortes 25.6.74”
12.5 x 18cm
Friedl Kubelka
Untitled (Pin-up), 1973
Black and white photograph mounted on cardboard
16.8 x 11.6cm
Friedl Kubelka
Untitled (Pin-up), 1971
Black and white photograph mounted on cardboard
11.6 x 16.4cm
Friedl Kubelka
Reise (Voyage), 1974
Black and white photograph with blue pen
“Toulon 21.6.74”
12.5 x 18cm
