Exodus, or the Voluntary Prisoners of Architecture: The Reception Area
Rem Koolhaas
Dutch, born 1944
Madelon Vriesendorp
Dutch, born 1945
Elia Zenghelis
British, born Greece 1937
Zoe Zenghelis
British, born Greece 1937
1972
A gelatin silver photograph with color ink in which Rem Koolhaas assembles a theatrical photomontage to dramatize how architectural space can corral, spectacle, and regulate human movement.
Stark black-and-white planes and a slanted beam of light carve the picture into stage-like zones filled with cut-out figures—naked lineups, uniformed officers, a seated couple, a green marble block and scattered domestic objects—creating a surreal, bureaucratic choreography.
Made during Koolhaas’s early 'Exodus' investigations, this piece helped establish photomontage as a critical architectural tool, using media, narrative, and collage to expose the social and political effects of built environments.
Medium
Gelatin silver photograph with color ink
Dimensions
10 1/2 x 14 1/2" (26.7 x 36.8 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Gift of Patricia Phelps de Cisneros, Takeo Ohbayashi Purchase Fund, and Susan de Menil Purchase Fund
Accession
364.1996
Palette
Art Terms
Exhibitions
