Everything old is new again- though these striking images by Alexey Titarenko appear to be age worn relics, they were actually shot in the early 90’s. I’ve always been drawn to dingy, forlorn aesthetics; strangely enough, I really enjoy the work that it takes to create a depressing photograph without relying on cliched, weepy subject matter. The atmosphere that Titarenko captures in his City of Shadows is one of fleeting ghosts, twisted souls, and a bizarre caricature of a bustling metropolis. Maybe I have a one track mind, but I can only imagine storming through people-mist covered streets, chased by terrifying screams and shuffling zombie creatures that fade in and out of sight. Best video game level design ever.
City of Shadows – Haunting Images by Alexey Titarenko
It’s been a while since I’ve seen a long exposure photograph that grabbed me that isn’t light painting or the like. Titarenko’s ability to balance focus and lighting with the blurs of people is nothing short of amazing. Even looking at the images and knowing exactly what is producing the ghostly mist doesn’t diminish the fact that they’re damn creepy. These would be totally worthy of framing if they wouldn’t make me pee my pants every time I got up at night for a drink of water. The collection below was taken over the course of a few years through the nineties, but they look more like weird, post nuclear fallout shots of a society that doesn’t realize it’s dead yet.
Check out all of Alexey’s work for over a decade of fantastic black and white glimpses of life across Europe through a gloomy, age-worn lens.
