Larry Fink: Sensual Empathy

Sensual Empathy captures the “good, bad, or ugly,” as Sante describes. Starting with ‘the good,’ we find snapshots of Hollywood stars Natalie Portman and Meryl Streep at an Oscar Party, as well as more documentary-style images of people clubbing and dancing. Conversely, ‘the bad’ or ‘ugly’ is conveyed through images portraying people from an entirely different socioeconomic class. In one, a woman stands holding a gun at Fink’s camera, winking and sticking her tongue out as she pretends to take aim at the photographer. The scene showcases domestic life, a world the viewer is invited to witness firsthand. There are more photos of everyday life for two other working class families, highlighting the struggles they face.

From high-end parties to lower-class houses, we then move to the 1960s Civil Rights movement, with a photo of Malcolm X giving a speech in 1963, or a scene from a school building where a Black student is speaking passionately at the front of the classroom. Bringing these images back to the fore of public consciousness was undoubtedly a choice by Sante to remind the world of the Civil Rights movement as discussions regarding similar movements today continue.

Larry Fink brings together these narratives, from the frivolity of Hollywood to the struggles of the lower classes, making a statement about the stark realities of inequality. While some photos comment on the dissimilarities of the societal groups, a common feature is the intimacy shared among subjects. Whether the setting is a fancy meal or at home on the couch, Fink’s photographs capture the rawness and the many faces to the human experience.

His solo show at CPW in New York reflects the diversity and division of a society filled with inequalities as Fink offers a snapshot of life from contemporary history.