Chema Madoz

Chema Madoz, actually José María Rodríguez Madoz ( born 1958 in Madrid ) is a Spanish photographer.

Biography

From 1980 to 1983 Madoz studied Art History at the University Complutense in Madrid and at the same time attended photography courses at the Centro de Enseñanza de la Imagen. In 1985 he had his first solo exhibition at the Real Sociedad Fotográfica of Madrid, 1988, a more than opening exhibition of Sala Minerva of the Círculo de Bellas Artes ( Madrid).

In 1990, he begins to develop his theme today surprising objects. In 1991 some of his works will be shown in an exhibition of contemporary photography of the art museum Reina Sofía traveling through several countries. He also receives in the same year the Premio Kodak España. In the following years he received an art scholarship and published two books. 1999 Solo exhibitions in Santiago de Compostela and the Reina Sofia Museum.

In 2000 he received the National Photography Award by the Spanish Ministry of Culture, the Japanese Higasikawa Prize for foreign photographers and the Premio PhotoEspaña.

In his black and white photos he shows everyday objects in unexpected contexts, which can seem surreal. With over 60 solo exhibitions and 8 books, he is recognized by audiences and critics and received several art awards. His works can be found among others in the art museum Museo Reina Sofía (Madrid ) and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.

For Photography

After several small and medium- format cameras he used since 1991, a Hasselblad for his photos. In general, is important to him to keep the technology in the background. Almost all the photos were taken in natural light. Artificial light plays a role only in photographs, on which lamps are part of the picture, or if a detail is to be particularly visible.

In his first series of pictures he took photos on the road and began later, at home to photograph his subjects near a window with natural light. He has set up only a relatively short time before the interview a studio, but estimates the faster work process and the ability to work on multiple projects simultaneously.

He sees himself as a photographer in general, the only creates his objects for the purpose of being photographed, but which can not stand on its own. From a different angle or considered as a whole they usually lose their presence. Very few objects also convince independent of the photo, and a couple of exceptions are interesting only as an object, but lose their effect on the photo.