Title: Disintegrating XI – Riva Aquarama
Year: 2023
Medium: Photography
Material: Lambda C-Print 100 x 180 cm, Edition of 8
Disintegrating Riva marks Fabian Oefner’s latest addition to his renowned Disintegrating Series. Its the first time that he ventures outside the world of cars to create one of these photographs. This particular image depicts the split second when a 1963 Riva Aquarama, racing across crystal-clear blue waters, disintegrates at full throttle.
While the photograph appears to capture a fleeting moment lasting mere milliseconds, it is, in fact, the result of a meticulously orchestrated process spanning several weeks. Oefner and his team photographed over 1800 individual components of an original Riva Aquarama at Bellini Nautica, situated along the serene shores of Italy’s Lago d’Iseo. He captured every single component of the V8 twin engines to vintage cockpit instruments, leather seats, and even minute splinters of mahogany wood from the hull. From a helicopter, Oefner suspended himself a few meters above the lake to seize the Aquarama rushing across the water. Back at his studio in the United States, the artist assembled together these 1800 photographs into one single image that depicts a moment, that never existed.
“Disintegrating Riva” serves as an exploration into our perception of time and reality. Oefner’s fascination lies in the paradox between what is seen and our conceptualization of time and reality. While the initial glance convinces us of witnessing a boat disintegrating at top speed, closer inspection reveals the impossibility of the moment. The rapidly receding parts appear unharmed, sharply in focus despite their apparent supersonic trajectory. This cognitive dissonance challenges viewers to reconcile visual impressions with scientific understanding, creating a moment that our eyes affirm as real, while our brains assert the opposite.
Title: Disintegrating XI – Riva Aquarama
Year: 2023
Medium: Photography
Material: Lambda C-Print 100 x 180 cm, Edition of 8
Disintegrating Riva marks Fabian Oefner’s latest addition to his renowned Disintegrating Series. Its the first time that he ventures outside the world of cars to create one of these photographs. This particular image depicts the split second when a 1963 Riva Aquarama, racing across crystal-clear blue waters, disintegrates at full throttle.
While the photograph appears to capture a fleeting moment lasting mere milliseconds, it is, in fact, the result of a meticulously orchestrated process spanning several weeks. Oefner and his team photographed over 1800 individual components of an original Riva Aquarama at Bellini Nautica, situated along the serene shores of Italy’s Lago d’Iseo. He captured every single component of the V8 twin engines to vintage cockpit instruments, leather seats, and even minute splinters of mahogany wood from the hull. From a helicopter, Oefner suspended himself a few meters above the lake to seize the Aquarama rushing across the water. Back at his studio in the United States, the artist assembled together these 1800 photographs into one single image that depicts a moment, that never existed.
“Disintegrating Riva” serves as an exploration into our perception of time and reality. Oefner’s fascination lies in the paradox between what is seen and our conceptualization of time and reality. While the initial glance convinces us of witnessing a boat disintegrating at top speed, closer inspection reveals the impossibility of the moment. The rapidly receding parts appear unharmed, sharply in focus despite their apparent supersonic trajectory. This cognitive dissonance challenges viewers to reconcile visual impressions with scientific understanding, creating a moment that our eyes affirm as real, while our brains assert the opposite.