“We cannot take anything or anyone for granted. Let us celebrate what is beautiful in life. Let us go through the hard times and remain standing.” With these words we enter into the poetics of Basque photographer Andoni Beristain who, with simple objects and colorful landscapes pays homage to the beauty of life. His Basque origins are fundamental in his research and particularly evident in his aesthetic. In his still life photographs, his personal vision of life emerges: colorful, optimistic and ironic.

With this series of shots by Andoni Beristain that we are offering today, we evoke the coming summer and everyone’s desire for carefree time. But despite the warm colors, the sea, the beach, and elements such as plastic chairs and fans that immediately harken back to summertime, a certain nostalgia lurks behind these shots. Summer lightness is accompanied by a streak of loneliness. A chair is alone in the sea. A game is carried by the waves. An egg hangs in the sun. A man floats alone in the sea. These are all lonely scenes that evoke a certain sense of abandonment. Probably, with these shots Andoni chooses to call to mind the dualism typical of summer, on the one hand we long for it but on the other hand we never get to enjoy it. And here Beristain’s phrase returns and his desire to teach us to savor the moment, to be able to lead the classic slow life, which is increasingly difficult to implement today.

Courtesy Andoni Bernstein