The City is a Choreography
Dublin Core
Title
The City is a Choreography
Subject
Fine Art
Description
I see the city as a place of constant movement. A rhythm we become part of once we step onto the concrete streets. The city is composed of strangers and familiar objects: the ubiquitous sidewalk, a slightly bent street pole, a bright orange traffic cone, or a broken-down bicycle left to rust. They all seem trivial and significant at the same time.
'The City is a Choreography' is photographed between 2017 and 2020 in various cities around the world. An exploration that started with the urge to step out of my everyday life in the city. I felt the need to experience the urban environment, with both eyes and body, instead of merely perceiving it. I wanted to figure out how to connect meaningfully with our daily environment and the strangers we pass by. It was the boredom of walking the same route every day, seeing the same objects and the anonymous faces in the crowd, that made me start to see the city as a choreography.
When the bright sunlight hits the streets, it seems to set the stage. Have you ever noticed that? The harsh shadows of the lantern are perfectly shaped to follow the lines of your body. The curved sidewalk fits your spine. The stranger and you become one while laying over a street pole. Maybe we are not spectators merely walking along the city, we are part of it. Not passive city dwellers but participants of a street scene. Can we transform the way we interact with the ordinary city and its inhabitants? Can it feel significant?
'The City is a Choreography' is photographed between 2017 and 2020 in various cities around the world. An exploration that started with the urge to step out of my everyday life in the city. I felt the need to experience the urban environment, with both eyes and body, instead of merely perceiving it. I wanted to figure out how to connect meaningfully with our daily environment and the strangers we pass by. It was the boredom of walking the same route every day, seeing the same objects and the anonymous faces in the crowd, that made me start to see the city as a choreography.
When the bright sunlight hits the streets, it seems to set the stage. Have you ever noticed that? The harsh shadows of the lantern are perfectly shaped to follow the lines of your body. The curved sidewalk fits your spine. The stranger and you become one while laying over a street pole. Maybe we are not spectators merely walking along the city, we are part of it. Not passive city dwellers but participants of a street scene. Can we transform the way we interact with the ordinary city and its inhabitants? Can it feel significant?
Creator
Melissa Schriek
Publisher
Self-published
Date
2020
Format
Swiss binding
Lumi silk 135 grams
Off-set printing
Lumi silk 135 grams
Off-set printing
Book Item Type Metadata
Dimensions
31x22x5 cm
Number of Pages
136
Number of images
150
Edition Size
300
Place of Publication
Amsterdam
Designer
Sam Velenne
Editor
Hannah Geddes, Melissa Schriek
Printer
Robstolk
ISBN
9789090335971
Website
www.melissaschriek.com
Where to buy
https://melissaschriek.myshopify.com/
Citation
MelissaSchriek, “The City is a Choreography,” Photo Book Cafe Archive, accessed April 30, 2025, https://www.photobookcafe-archive.co.uk/items/show/269.