Stratil Vaclav

Prague performer, photographer, musician and painter Václav Stratil, born in 1950, isn't a boyish Cindy Sherman--his costumes and production are way too nonchalant--but he's playing similar riffs. This first monograph, I'm History presents and comments on selections from seven of his photographic cycles. Most of the images it gathers, which date from 1991 to the present, were taken in public photo studios. They are distinguished by the constant, and often slight, transformation of the artist's identity through playful investigation or confrontation--through a leather jacket or a baleful look. A short overview of his career is accompanied by an essay from the philosopher Karel Thein on identity, image and the history of photographic documentation of the face.