Engaging with Chris Rhodes’ images means finding romance in the mundanity performed by his subjects: sometimes a faded floral lampshade, elsewhere a dirty gold letterbox. Frequently enveloped in natural sunlight and typically modest in composition, this found beauty exists in contrast to the photographer’s initial introduction to the medium, which he summarises as being mostly about the mechanics – ‘the technologic process, the idea of freezing a moment that could not be captured by the eye’ – than anything specifically artistic.
Informed early on by the work of Joel Sternfeld and Simone Nieweg, it was a similarly pragmatic approach that saw him switching from larger formats to 35mm, a move which subsequently shaped the aesthetic that won over fans like including fashion heavyweights Gucci and Helmut Lang. Away from a coveted client list, it’s his personal work – much of it shot across the globe while on assignment for said list – that has amplified his production and led to Hotel Mermaid Club: his debut imprint published by RVB Books, and a correlating show at Webber Gallery, now open until 20 December.
The move to a more lightweight apparatus (on which much of the project was shot), he explains, allowed ‘me to see differently. The camera became a purpose on my short term explorations. It wasn’t a conscious decision or something that I deliberated on. It’s completely impulsive and instinctive.’ This machinery’s attributes are mirrored in the more concrete characteristics of his operation too, as he tells Wallpaper*, ‘I wouldn’t say the creation of photography in terms of image making is overly consuming. I work very freely. Over the years I have taken trips purely to make work, however I was never fully satisfied with these images. I used to take photographs every day, even when I didn’t feel like taking photographs, but over time I have learnt to only photograph when I feel the need.’
If Hotel Mermaid Club looks familiar, it’s because the book has been in the making for several years, while an earlier public showing of the work took place at Webber in 2017, comprising 15 photographs (today’s edition nears 55). ‘The original show was more of a testing ground, and ultimately led to the completion of the book,’ Rhodes explains. ‘Hotel Mermaid Club was a working title – from a building sign in Tokyo. When I was reviewing the images the bizarre translation felt absurd, almost like a state of being. It became more relevant when I started to sequence the project.’ Invariably in a Hotel Mermaid Club frame of mind, a second volume is apparently already near to being completed.
INFORMATION
Hotel Mermaid Club, €38, published by RVB Books. webberrepresents.com
ADDRESS
Webber Gallery
18 Newman Street
London W1T 1PE
-
This Hackney bar is reviving London’s legacy of lesbian spacesDesigned by Studio Popelo, La Camionera emerges as a vital sanctuary for London’s FLINTA* community, honouring it right down to the details
-
Inside Miu Miu’s ‘proudly modern and minimal’ new London storeWallpaper* takes a tour of Miu Miu’s newly refurbished New Bond Street store, which is designed as a gathering place for the Italian house’s ‘spirited, intelligent, thoughtful community’
-
Herzog & de Meuron are renovating New York's iconic Breuer Building. Here's a first look at the renderingsThis fall, the brutalist icon will be re-opening as the New York headquarters for Sotheby's.
-
London calling! Artists celebrate the city at Saatchi YatesLondon has long been an inspiration for both superstar artists and newer talent. Saatchi Yates gathers some of the best
-
Alexandra Metcalf creates an unsettling Victorian world in LondonAlexandra Metcalf turns The Perimeter into a alternate world in exhibition, 'Gaaaaaaasp'
-
Lubaina Himid and Magda Stawarska’s new show at Kettle’s Yard will uncover the missing narratives in everyday life storiesThe artists and partners in life are collaborating on an immersive takeover of Kettle’s Yard, Cambridge, in an exhibition that delves into a lost literary legacy
-
Sexual health since 1987: archival LGBTQIA+ posters on show at Studio VoltaireA look back at how grassroots movements emphasised the need for effective sexual health for the LGBTQIA+ community with a host of playful and informative posters, now part of a London exhibition
-
Ten things to see at London Gallery WeekendAs 125 galleries across London take part from 6-8 June 2025, here are ten things not to miss, from David Hockney’s ‘Love’ series to Kayode Ojo’s look at the superficiality of taste
-
Out of office: what the Wallpaper* editors have been up to this weekThis week saw the Wallpaper* team jet-setting to Jordan and New York; those of us left in London had to make do with being transported via the power of music at rooftop bars, live sets and hologram performances
-
See the fruits of Niki de Saint Phalle and Jean Tinguely's creative and romantic union at Hauser & Wirth SomersetAn intimate exhibition at Hauser & Wirth Somerset explores three decades of a creative partnership
-
Out of office: what the Wallpaper* editors have been up to this weekThe Wallpaper* team enjoyed good art, food and drink this week, attending various exhibition openings and unearthing some of the best pasta and cocktails that London has to offer
