Corporeal Politics: Power, Desire, and the Sacred – Andres Serrano

In 1991, following his photographs of the churches of Saint-Eustache and Sainte-Clotilde in Paris, Andres Serrano continued his exploration of the sacred by turning his lens toward religious architecture and the people who inhabit these spaces. Among these works is the portrait titled Frari Paolo, which he took in Venice. In this image, the monk’s face emerges from the darkness, illuminated by a dramatic light that evokes the chiaroscuro of Baroque painters, particularly Caravaggio. Serrano borrows the visual language of seventeenth-century paintings, using the interplay of shadow and light to infuse his photographs with a sense of spirituality and mysticism. Through this approach, he gives his subjects an intimate yet sacred presence, where light becomes the conduit for divine revelation and inner contemplation.