Churches Ad Hoc

New York Times review by REBECCA FAIRLEY RANEY Even through the confusion of the last 30 years, people have managed to maintain some basic social tenets: don't hit, don't run around naked and don't laugh in church. Laughing at a church is definitely out of the question. Perhaps that's why Herman Krieger is getting so many laughs. He made a career of making light of churches in a photo essay called "Churches ad hoc", a sort of renegade Rorschach test fit for any Sunday school. In Krieger's eye, a statue of a Jesus without hands is "Carpal Deum." A boarded-up church is "The Pope's Answer to Luther." And a happy blond toddler on the lawn of the Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church becomes "Young Zionist." Potential publishers turned down the photos because they were too hard to categorize -- they were either too funny to be religious or too religious to be funny -- so Krieger took them to the Web. He delights in the response; the pictures speak to the perspective of whoever sees them. Christians see devotion. Atheists see satire. Photographers see artistry. Krieger was most surprised at the response from Christians. He thought they might take offense. "I'm not a Christian," he said, "and I got so many comments from people who thought I knew something about theology." In more than a year since the site went up, "Churches ad hoc" has drawn more than 40 links from Christian Web sites, and pastors often ask if they can use his pictures for their calendars and newsletters. The photographs were even exhibited in the Art Rageous tent at the 1996 Cornerstone Church Festival in Illinois. After the festival, Christian chat rooms lit up with praise, and many people called the photos the best art exhibit shown. On his own Web site, Krieger lists people's responses. "Your photography is as playful and cogent as your prose," one fan wrote. "By the way, I pastor a small church in Washington, D.C., and thoroughly enjoyed your poking through the pious facade." Paradoxically, the response from atheists and freethinkers has been just as enthusiastic. "Thanks for carrying on the tradition of laughing at religion!" one wrote. "You manage to capture the essence of the hypocrisy that fuels all religions in a very clever and humorous style," another commented. Then there are the photographers, who see only photography. "I loved your panoramic photos; I wish I had your skill so that my contemporary photos of Detroit would look even close. Care to pass along any tips?" When his work holds

שנה

1998

שפה

English

הוצאה

Photozone Press

מהדורות

1

עמודים

96

ISBN

9780966580969

מקור הנתונים: Wikidata