INVAREBEST

I examine the phenomenon of how two strangers can create an intimate relationship through the kiss. The kiss itself never happens, but the models' behaviour makes this illusion inevitable. The lips and the movements are different for each model, they will never perfectly fit each other. I asked strangers to imitate kissing alone in front of my camera, and then, arbitrarily, I paired them up with people whom they do not know. I ignored everything which normally depends on a person's free choice, I put them in a grotesque position. Because what still remains with respect to the kiss in the classical sense is the longing, the experience, the learned gestures, which are observed on the models' face. Each image can be matched to any other image. A kiss becomes possible between whoever, there are no conventions.
Closed eyes is an important gesture since it creates the illusion that the person is invisible, so anything can happen. The spectators are excluded from this situation, so the players can establish their own intimate space which the spectator can come close to, but they can not be involved in this contact system. If we see people with closed eyes, we have the opportunity to examine them better since we have the illusion that the models do not see us. The models' gestures are different and varied, but the common feature is that they establish an intimate relationship with each other. There are many couples formed by the pictures and each relationship can be read differently, regarding of course the gesture of kissing, whispering to one another, storytelling, sharing and self-reflection. The models appear to give themselves to each other, without any inhibitions or preconceptions.

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