Guido Mocafico is neither a scientist nor a collector of curiosities, but a photographer and lover of art who partakes of the vocabulary and the colors of nature. He regards jellyfish, snakes, and tarantulas as the creations of an unparalleled artist. A strange sensation emanates from his images, which combine a vision of the unknown with a large dose of mystery--and fear, for these animals secrete a toxic substance that when injected by sting or bite can, in certain cases, cause death. With just the right amount of distance, Mocafico offers a contemporary view of the demiurge, showing us that we live in a world of illusion. In the four books of this compendium, three of images and one of text, we get the full range of his view of this world. In Greek mythology, the Medusa sees with such intensity that whatever crosses her gaze becomes petrified . . . much like the eye of the photographer armed with a camera. The photographs in Medusa reside at the border of geometric abstraction--where is the head? where are the eyes? the sex? Serpens examines the animal that has been demon, divinity, sacred protector, ancestor. Among the 2,700 known species, few snakes are dangerous, let alone lethal, to humans, but prejudices run deep. Aranea explores the fears that scientific rationality should banish: Spiders, small and large, continue to inspire dread in us---the shiver of touching their silky filaments and, above all, feeling their fangs, used for attack and defense and filled with deadly venom.

Guido Mocafico: Venenum

Arts & Photography

Goy, Jacqueline

Ineich, Ivan

Individual Artists

Steidl

In Greek mythology, the Medusa sees with such intensity that whatever crosses her gaze becomes petrified: her eye functions much like that of the photographer. The photographs in Guido Mocafico's Medusa arrest a species beyond the norm: where is the head? where are the eyes? the sex? His subjects are jellyfish, and as a photographer working in the vocabulary and the colors of nature, Mocafico regards them as the creation of an unparalleled artist. His images of them fall at the border of geometric abstraction, violently disconnected from the rest of the animal world, and they combine a vision of the unknown with a large dose of mystery and of fear, as these translucent creatures secrete a toxic substance that can, in certain cases, cause death. With just the right amount of distance, Mocafico offers a contemporary view of the demiurge, showing us that we live in a world of illusion. Medusa, originally only bound as part of the limited edition boxed set Venenum, is here available for the first time on its own.

Guido Mocafico: Medusa

By way of a day job, Guido Mocafico takes pictures for Wallpaper, The Face and French and American Vogue. For years he's also been photographing creepy-crawlies, including spiders, snakes and jellyfish. What animal has inspired as much dread, as many legends, as much revulsion and terror as the snake? Among the 2,700 known species, few are dangerous, let alone lethal, to humans, but prejudices run deep. Cobras, mambas, vipers and their cousins swing languidly from Amazonian canopies, hibernate through harsh Arctic winters, and eat entire cows in one gulp; humans quiver in their boots. Even as some species face the possibility of extinction before we fully understand them, new ones are still being discovered. Mocafico's explorations of their aesthetic properties bring out the singular power and beauty--and ability to unnerve--of the animal that human societies have called demon, divinity, sacred protector and ancestor.

Guido Mocafico: Serpens

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Goy, Jacqueline. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Goy, Jacqueline

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Goy, Jacqueline. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Guido Mocafico: Venenum

Guido Mocafico: Medusa

Guido Mocafico: Serpens