Double Take

Double Take presents thirty-nine uncannily accurate reconstructions of the great images and moments from history – ranging from the earliest known photograph, through the landmark events of the 20th and 21st century, the icons of popular culture and the art world, to the world’s most expensive photograph. These intricately crafted works have been created in miniature by photographers Jojakim Cortis and Adrian Sonderegger. Inspired by the record auction price of $4.3m set by Andreas Gursky’s Rhein II in 2011, they set themselves a challenge: could they use model making and lighting skills to reconstruct the Gursky image in their Zürich studio? The photograph they created from a miniaturized diorama of Rhein II was a success. It worked! This one-off challenge became the starting point for a larger personal project by the duo – a whole series of increasingly elaborate and difficult recreations of photographs of pivotal events throughout history. The whole world, and the surface of the moon, were conjured in their studio.

Double Take is not just a technical tour de force – it opens up a wider consideration of image making, of the ‘slideshow’ of famous photographs we each hold in our memory, and of the problem at the heart of the medium: can the photographic image ever be trusted? With a full selection of images showing the making of the reconstructions in the studio, an introduction by Florian Ebner (of the Pompidou Centre), a supporting essay by Christian Caujolle and an in-depth interview with the photographers, Double Take is the perfect volume for all with a love of photography with a twist and a sense of humour.