Invited Guest: Chutney Bannister aka Yusuf Ozkizil

Surreal Line is a series of images by photographer Chutney Bannister that feature advertising photos juxtaposed with riders on the London Underground. Chutney tells us that:

"The Surreal Line is a series of images taken from an ongoing project, documenting moments of chance on the London Underground where static billboards and posters coalesce with the world around them. I'm interested in how these advertisements, specifically designed for delivering one message, can have that story completely hijacked -- often by the mere framing of a window -- creating an entirely new context. Commuters, who are somewhat static, withdrawn, and locked in their own private routines, are oblivious to these momentary collisions. I'm fascinated by these chance encounters, and needless to say I gave up reading on the tube after my first trip on the surreal line."

Chutney's images, with their often-ironic juxtapositions, illustrate how the ubiquity of advertising has consequences that are often laughably out of sync with the world it inhabits. (File Magazine)














Chutney Bannister, known to most people outside of flickr as Yusuf Ozkizil, travels through London armed with a compact camera, seeking to take the banal by surprise. His current show underworld is an unusual take on the seemingly familiar world of the London Underground. A collection of unguarded, and unfamiliar moments, which often go unnoticed...

You can see Yusuf's underworld series and other photographs here.
All photos © Yusuf Ozkizil
invited by Rhonda Prince