Am Tag davor
Julian Salinas

Working as comfortably on advertising commissions and for magazines as he is on artistic photography,in the series “Am Tag davor” (The Day Before) Julian Salinas focuses on the human face. The portrait is an important part of his work, as this artist has taken photographs of celebrities such asIggy Pop, Pipilotti Rist and the singer Moby as well as those of regular people. While in “Ordinary World” (2004–2005) he sought to escape the daily routine by capturing the particularity of peoplein groups, in “Am Tag davor” they escape the ordinary by virtue of what they express. Each of the eleven people photographed is framed in an identical manner from the shoulders up and before a neutralbackground, but they distinguish themselves from each other by their specific expression. Yet all are facing a similar situation: before (am Tag davor) an important decision or a departure into theunknown. The fixedness of the photographic image allows the artist to freeze the precise moment when emotion can be read upon the face. However, the emotional intensity is so great that it transcendsthe moment itself and moves into duration.