Signs and Relics

Signs & Relicsis an exploration of the world from a photographer's point of view -- in this case, notedVillage Voicephotographer Sylvia Plachy. Her engaging images -- some light and humorous, some somber -- show particular people and places at precise moments of synchronicity. Plachy draws telling metaphors from the photographs, which are grouped into nineteen thematic sections. "Sit," for example, shows images ranging from a wood chair in a Parisian window to a woman perched in a tree to Barbie atop a pair of high-heeled legs. Fragments of dreams and memories coexist with images from the streets of the world and photographs of people, from Plachy's family to viewers at an art exhibition. The text suggests the ties that draw the views together and simultaneously offers insights into the photographer's personal philosophy. The various sections form a mosaic in which the pieces refer to each other and to the notion that the present is rooted in the past and that any view of the world -- photographic or theoretical -- is part of an unseen ensemble.

Sylvia Plachy is the photographer for the Village Voice, where her photographic column, Unguided Tour, ran for nine years. Her photographs have appeared in The New Yorker, Artforum, Grand Street, the New York Times Magazine, Life, Geo, Wired, and many other national and international publications. Her work is in numerous collections, including the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Her books include Unguided Tour, which won the ICP Infinity Award for Best Publication of 1990, and Red Light, a collaboration with the writer James Ridgeway.

Wim Wenders has directed many films including Wings of Desire, Paris, Texas, and Buena Vista Social Club.