October 15, 2021

Renunciation is the act of rejecting something, such as a belief, label, or a particular practice. In his photograph Renunciation, made around the 1980s, Misha Gordin depicts it as an act of renewal, utilizing the water to wash away old beliefs and practices. He employs a photographic rendering of chiaroscuro to create a dramatic atmosphere and to emphasize the renewal within renunciation. The darkness of the upper portion of the sky paired with the darkness of the shore highlight the brightness of the water at the center of the composition, bringing attention to the radiant sun on the horizon as well. The sun may foreshadow the possibilities one has once they renounce what does not suit them. Moreover, the contrast between dark and light leads the viewer’s eyes to the figure in the water. He cups the water in his hands, cleansing his face and body. There are bags bunched together across the shore, which appear to be either burlap sacks or trash bags; some of them burst at the seems with masks. Like the contrast in the previously mentioned portions of the photograph, the masks contain a stark difference between the black eyes, mouth, nostrils, and eyebrows with the white remainder of the face. These distinctions highlight the dramatic expressions of the masks; their wide mouths accompanied by their raised eyebrows, which outline the upward motion of the eyes, connote shock and despair. Such expressions may illustrate the friction that comes along with the act of renunciation.

Throughout our lives, others try to define who we are. According to Emily McDowell, “your true self is right there, buried under cultural conditioning, other people’s opinions, and inaccurate conclusions you drew as a kid that became your beliefs about who you are.” The masks in the bags in Renunciation may represent the cultural conditioning, opinions, and our own inaccurate conclusions about who we are, as detailed by McDowell. We try to wear and perform these personas to appease critics, but one way or another our desire for authenticity leads us to reject these personas. The figure in Gordin’s photograph utilizes the water to cleanse himself of inaccurate identity constructs, renouncing them from his life and uncovering an identity.

Misha Gordin was born in 1946 in Riga, Latvia: one year after World War II ended. He grew up during the Soviet occupation in Latvia, so Russian culture was a prominent part of his upbringing. Gordin graduated as an aviation engineer from a technical college, but he never worked in aviation. Rather, he worked at Riga Motion Studios, designing equipment for special effects. Gordin initially did not have much exposure to or interest in art. Eventually, however, he began to pursue photography at age nineteen, hoping to develop his own style within the medium. Social realism was the dominant movement in the western art world at the time that Gordin started in photography. He started with photographing portraits and documentary images, but this subject matter did not allow him to effectively express himself.  After a hiatus from photography to research cinematography, Gordin discovered an approach to photography that resonated with him; He opted for documenting concepts rather than literal moments. This focus on concepts is evident in Renunciation, along with his other works. In 1974, Gordin and his wife Rosa immigrated to Detroit, where he continued his career as a photographer. He has received several awards, including two National Endowment for the Arts awards, a photography fellowship from the Michigan Council for the Arts, and the Salon International d’Art Photographique from Reims, France. His ability to create dramatic scenes before Photoshop existed makes his work that much more impressive.

Written by Angela Athnasios

Source: Thornwood Gallery, "Misha Gordin (1946-2020)."

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