Stable Vices by Joanna Piotrowska. Published by MACK.
Joanna Piotrowska’s Stable Vices, published through MACK, compiles three series of photographs that examine the things that we do in reaction to the human need to feel secure. Moving from bodily abstractions of women’s self-defense manual poses to absurd pillow forts in the living rooms of adults to zoo animal enclosures, Piotrowska’s images echo the same pervasive need to control and construct that I have found myself responding to our unique, contemporary chaos with. Stable Vices is a book that is not only elegantly designed with stunning black and white reproductions and an engaging, variable layout, but is also one with texts that offer a dynamic range of critical lenses and writing styles. Stable Vices is everything that I want a photo book to be — cohesive, thought-provoking, and absolutely beautiful.
Delaney Hoffman (she/they) is an artist and writer based in Albuquerque, NM. She graduated with her BFA from the University of New Mexico in 2019 and has shown work throughout New Mexico as well as nationally. Their practice is based in traditional darkroom techniques and includes textile objects as well as written works that explore utility, fantasy, and gender. Delaney is currently the Assistant in the photo-eye Gallery & Bookstore.