Walker Art Gallery opens Alive: In The Face of Death an exhibition on view 17 May – 15 September 2013.
Featuring more than 70 images, in ‘Alive: In The Face of Death’, photographer Rankin sets out to explore and challenge our perceptions of death. Through his lens, the stories of those touched by death are revealed.
They include people living with a terminal illness, those who have faced death and survived, and those who work within the death industry.
One portrait is of 48-year-old Mum, Sandra, who was diagnosed with breast cancer eight years ago. In Rankin’s image of her, Sandra feels she is displaying her ‘inner warrior’ as she battles her condition.
Rankin’s own response to the subject is reflected in a series of self-portraits and in his ‘life masks’. These include images of living stars such as Jarvis Cocker, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Joanna Lumley along with those who have passed away such as Marlon Brando and Peter Cushing.
In these powerful works, Rankin encourages the sitters to examine their own experiences and feelings about death. The resulting images capture their determination, optimism and sheer zest for life. www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk