Wonderfully eccentric, the work of Pol Kurucz takes studio portrait photography in a new direction. Focusing on vivid color and eccentric mise-en-scène in each shoot to create his distinctive pop-tastic style, his photographs have been praised by some of the leading fashion magazines as theatrical, provocative and startlingly subversive. Continuing to innovate, Kurucz has moved into the moving image world, more of which can be seen on our Instagram feed.
After moving to Brazil five years ago, Kurucz abandoned a career in theater and moved into producing large scale art projects. Rather than hiring event photographers, he bought a small camera and started to document the projects. Slowly he started to use unconventional models, accessories, sets and in time developed his unforgettable aesthetic. When the World Photography Organisation caught up with Kurucz to discover more about his photography, his responses, much like his images, are punchy, pithy and poetic.
How do you think your background in theatre has influenced your work?
// Before theater, there was a little boy who could not tell the difference between reality and fiction, then came a teen who did not want to tell the difference, and then an adult who plainly chose fiction, stories – be it on stage or through a lens.
Do any other art forms influence your photography?
// Absolutely: painting (especially the Surrealist and Pop Art movements), theater (particularly the works by American experimental theater stage director Bob Wilson and German playwright Bertolt Brecht) and...life.
What do you think is the most exciting trend right now in the photography world?
// Mixing classical photography with virtual models and hyper-realistic 3D images.
Has Instagram benefited your photography and if yes, how?
// Tremendously. It's the best feedback tool possible.
The moving image works you post on your Instagram account are incredibly interesting. What do you think it is the moving image that intrigues your followers?
// In two words: content diversity.
