“Never try to convey your idea to the audience,” said Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky, “—it is a thankless and senseless task. Show them life, and they’ll find within themselves the means to assess and appreciate it.”
“I prefer to express myself metaphorically. Let me stress: metaphorically, not symbolically. A symbol contains within itself a definite meaning, certain intellectual formula, while metaphor is an image. An image possessing the same distinguishing features as the world it represents. An image — as opposed to a symbol — is indefinite in meaning. One cannot speak of the infinite world by applying tools that are definite and finite. We can analyse the formula that constitutes a symbol, while metaphor is a being-within-itself, it’s a monomial. It falls apart at any attempt of touching it.”
These words of the famous Russian cinematographer illustrate the core of his work and perspective. Towards that, we can also have a look at his elegiac collection of Polaroid photographs of his friends and family, taken between 1979 and 1984 in his native Russia and in Italy, where he spent time in political exile.
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
POLAROID BY ANDREI TARKOVSKY FROM THE BOOK INSTANT LIGHT – TARKOVSKY POLAROIDS FROM THAMES AND HUDSON
ANDRE TARKOVSKY ON THE SET OF MIRROR, 1962.jpg)
ANDREI TARKOVSKY, IVAN?S CHILDHOOD (STILL), 1962
ANDREI TARKOVSKY, STALKER (STILL), 1979READ ALSO: ASYLUM: PHOTOGRAPHER CHRISTOPHER PAYNE CAPTURES THE UNCANNY ATMOSPHERE OF ABANDONED MENTAL HOSPITALS