Alone Together is an ongoing photographic project by Aristotle Roufanis, for which he takes photos of large metropoles in a way that only tiny, individual apartment lights are visible. Hardly recognisable in the dark, some of the world’s most famous metropoles such as London, Paris, Miami, Hong Kong and Athens are transformed into sprawling canvases of anonymity, where countless people have decided to make their home but hardly connect to each other.
Social alienation is a phenomenon that occurs in large urban centres all around the world. The term is used to describe “a condition in social relationships reflected by a low degree of integration or common values and a high degree of distance or isolation between individuals, or between an individual and a group of people in a community or work environment”
Exhibition concept & artistic intent
Aristotle Roufanis’ Alone Together is a project that was born through a personal experience of social isolation, namely the artist’s experience as an immigrant to London seven years ago. This first-hand experience of alienation was the starting point for the entire Alone Together series, which now includes photos from several cities in Europe and America. The exhibition’s aim is to combine Alone Together’s artistic proposition with a wider social message that could potentially help raise awareness about a crucial issue of our times.
The main characteristic of each work in the Alone Together series is the way the image is edited so that the entire surface of the work is perfectly sharp. This creates an impression of ever-presence, a kind of superhuman vision that looks down upon a city from a higher vantage point. This special vision enables us to look closely to people’s houses, and in a way to peek into their lives. Through creative editing, Aristotle Roufanis isolates some of the windows in each cityscape, pinning them like bright dots in a vast sea of dark blue. This is the artist’s way to show what social isolation looks like from outside, and help people understand that although we feel alone, we are not.
Each work in the series is printed in large size as to allow the viewer to immerse themselves in the image. This is also the reason why the works are presented without glazing.. As Aristotle Roufanis has put it, “although the urban landscape changes from city to city, loneliness remains the same wherever you go.” The uniformity of the works helps the viewer experience this reality that all big cities share, and understand the sheer scale of urban habitats (and human life within them) around the world.
INDICATIVE EXHIBITION CONTENT
The exhibition Alone Together includes several components, some of which can be adapted, developed further or omitted completely, depending on production capabilities, curation and available space.
1. Centrepiece
The exhibition’s centrepiece is an enormous print of a cityscape in high definition, in Aristotle Roufanis’ signature technique as seen in the other works of the Alone Together series. This print is over ten meters long, like a monumental snapshot of a contemporary city, and is presented on one straight wall.
2. Alone Together prints
The main body of the exhibition are prints from the Alone Together series, exhibited together for the first time. These are all framed and their size varies between 1,5 and 3 meters.
3. Video Work
The exhibition can be complemented with specially commissioned videos that expand on the Alone Together concept of city alienation, human relationships and loneliness. These works are currently in progress
4. Publication
A special Alone Together publication for the exhibition, with photo documentation of all the artworks, texts and interviews.
5. Parallel programme
A series of events can accompany the exhibition. Because of its resonant social theme, the exhibition can become an opportunity for the museum to stage a series of events related to social alienation, and to raise awareness about this phenomenon.
Aristotle Roufanis (b. 1983 Athens, Greece) is a London-based visual artist whose work focuses on patterns, textures and human interactions defined by the condition of urban life and architecture.
An active photographer since his early 20’s, Aristotle Roufanis is a self-taught artist, who has mastered his medium through a series of rigorous photographic projects. He has travelled the world extensively, creating images that combine meticulous digital editing with a very personal artistic vision.
In 2016, his summer exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts sold out before opening to the public. In September 2017, a photo from his ‚ÄúAlone Together‚Äù series has been shortlisted by MoMA curator Katerina Stathopoulou for Life Framer‚Äôs Photography Award (Edition IV – OPEN CALL). In the same month, the ‚ÄúAlone Together‚Äù series has been selected by Behance curators for the Best of Behance¬†online gallery. His work has been showcased on prestigious art fairs worldwide.
Aristotle Roufanis’ work is part of the Patrons of the Royal Academy’s collections, as well as other private collections throughout the world.
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