Description
Unfallen (boys) depicts two young boys attempting to do headstands on the beach in Accra, Ghana. It is an image of spontaneous, youthful exuberance, but when turned upside-down, it appears as though the two boys are holding up the world. Re-orienting the photograph reinforces the ambiguity of the image, challenging both the ‘truth’ of the photographic image and the accepted order of the world. This photograph is part of Ramlochand’s series, unfallen, where photographs, drawings, and kinetic sculptures spin, twist, and redefine ‘place’ into ‘topsy-turvy’ moments that allude to a world caught in equal and opposing forces. The photographic moments in this work use images, in both a literal and metaphorical way to defy gravity. The images are (re)oriented the ‘right’ way up – thus turning actual ‘reality’ upside down to render an alternative perspective, while creating a new meaning to the image.
Ramona Ramlochand was born in Guyana and grew up in England and Cyprus before moving to Canada. She received her BFA at the University of Ottawa in 1990, and her MFA from Concordia University in 2004. Ramlochand’s artworks are represented in the collections of the Canada Council Art Bank, City of Ottawa, Musée du Québec, and Ottawa Art Gallery.