In formal engagement and material inclusion, John Edmonds’ Between Pathos & Seduction considers how intimacy can be illuminated or occluded photographically, in concert with the human subject and the sculptural form. Subsuming Man Ray’s attunement to precision alongside the enthralling alchemic spirit of Rotimi Fani-Kayode, Edmonds figural studies revel in the drama of the photographic studio as well as the unassuming terrain of domestic interior spaces. The resulting compositions divulge elements of ecstasy and exposure, deferral and refusal.
...
From bodily expression to abstracted forms, figural representation is sustained and transformed through the Central and West African sculptures also portrayed in these images—culled from Edmonds’ personal collection, which has been growing extensively since the spring of 2018. Whether isolated centrally amongst sheets of dazzling gold, or clustered in a tender dialogue with a seated figure and rendered in monochrome, these sculptures are staged in a manner predicated on intimate relation within the frame, not solely for external visual consumption or material possession.
...