Larry Sultan, Dede Wilsey of SF Society, gallery foucs21, Zurich, Switzerland

For their first fall show, gallery focus21 will be showcasing eight works by late photographer Larry Sultan (American, 1946–2009). The portraits were originally taken to accompany an editorial piece in W magazine, an American publication known for its thought-provoking material and in-depth coverage of high society in America and Europe. Sultan often explored the tension between fact and fiction in Figurative photography. He approached this project on San Francisco’s upper crust in the same manner as he approached the rest of his work. The portraits prove to be less of a commentary about San Francisco’s social hierarchy and more of a contemporary adaptation of the artistic tradition of portraiture among the upper class. In this series of photographs, the settings are lavish and the figures are dressed fashionably, but little is revealed beyond their obvious wealth. Poses are restrained, but tension exists with the play of light between foreground and background, while the inclusion of props, children, and pets provide visual rhetoric.

In his first solo exhibition in New York City, emerging artist 2E will be presenting a series of photographs that take the viewers beyond the facades of the cosmopolitan city. The artist remains anonymous because most of his shots are taken in areas that are barred from the public, including subway tunnels and condemned buildings. This exploration of restricted sites allows 2E to capture the unfamiliar angles of recognizable urban structures, at times suggesting the inevitable fate that awaits them as the city population expands and building developments emerge.