High-rise by Photographer Peter Bobby

Although I have more of an interest in residential architecture than commercial or business orientated builds, I have to say this recent project by photographer Peter Bobby certainly caught my attention. I guess houses excite me because you can play with the idea of function in the home, you can also be tailored towards the space and the user. With a commercial build you’re often catering for a wide variety of individuals and it can’t really be unique per-se. Saying that, it’s interesting to think about architecture on a wider level, and how someone could design a whole city rather than just one small location. Would this work? Who knows, but it sounds like a monumental task and would be incredible to see how this would plan out on paper and function in the real world.

With the turn of the century many were interested in constructing high-rise developments in some of the worlds major cities. Instantly it became a corporate building type for an increasingly global industry. This particular series titled ‘High-rise’ by Peter Bobby examines the sociopolitical, architectural and visual discourse surrounding these constructions using a combination of both interior and exterior still and moving imagery. I found it intriguing in the sense that it made me think about a number of things, most prominently the odd contrast between the business world and the relationship to the city below. It’s almost as if everything you think about this commercial world can be pulled out of the architecture itself, quite crazy when all the details come in to play. It’s also quite odd that individuals are eating, going to the toilet or having meetings that high up in the sky, it just doesn’t seem natural and you can see this as you browse through the series.

I placed a short film below of Peter explaining about this collection thanks to the good folk at Diffusion Festival, where he will be showing his work throughout this month. I guess you can gather your own thoughts, as everyone will have a different perception of the project and what it means. Overall, definitely one you should check out if you’re near Cardiff or at the Diffusion festival itself. For now you can watch the interview below, and see more of the photography/short films on Peter Bobby’s portfolio page.

peterbobby.com
diffusionfestival.org

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