Look Closer. Yoram Gross Photography

What I can’t say in words, I can say in pictures.
Yoram Gross

Gross captures images of common objects that most people don’t take the time to look at and truly see: rust patterns on metal, fence boards covered with peeling paint, cracked tree limbs, colorful water patterns. Pointing his camera lens at needles and discarded objects or details in the landscape, Gross not only tries to see beauty but, at 85 years of age, his works are full of metaphors. He says jokingly that it is ironic that everything old is beautiful, except for people.
Perhaps a comment by James Gleeson, the foremost Australian painter, touches the essence of Yoram Gross’ work: “The rarest of artists are those who see familiar things as no one had previously seen them…”
Look Closer consists of almost 30 photographs by Yoram Gross never before shown in Poland.

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Yoram (Jerzy) Gross is a leading Australian director and producer of animated films. He was born in Kraków in 1926 to a wealthy Jewish family. Gross survived the war with his mother and siblings in Poland. Although they were included on Oskar Schindler’s famous list, they decided to try surviving on their own and went into hiding. During this time, the family changed their hiding place over 72 times. Yoram Gross immigrated to Israel in the 1950s and in 1968 moved to Australia, where he lives today.
Gross first entered the film industry in 1947 in Kraków when he became one of director Jerzy Toeplitz’s first students. He began his career as a director’s assistant and later became an independent director and producer in his own right. Gross’ films were screened at a variety of festivals across the globe and won numerous awards. In 1995, he was awarded the prestigious Order of Australia for his outstanding achievements and contributions to the Australian film industry.
Several generations of children grew up watching Joram Gross’ films, and his characters such as Blinky Bill became role models for them. Along with his wife, Sandra, Gross produced many children’s television series that are internationally renowned. His most recent work is a series of animated short films centred on Professor Filutek, and inspired by the cult drawings by Zbigniew Lengren published in the Polish weekly Przekrój. Gross also recently released his autobiography, My Animated Life.
The Look Closer exhibition coincides with the premiere of a full-length documentary about his life by the Polish filmmaker Tomasz Magierski.

Opening 21 October 2011, 7pm; to 8 July 2012.