»A.L.M. l'édition«, 2017

Artist Book, 32 page-brochure, staple bound, edition: 100
42 cm × 29,7 cm
©Layout A.L.M.-CI: Gina Mönch
order here: almeditions

When you first browse through it, Anne-Lena Michel’s work »A.L.M. l'édition« resembles a fashion label’s lookbook or a particularly aggressive marketing campaign—the artist is clearly utilizing the visual language of fashion photography here. Since her business card operates as a basic design element in each of the items in the fictional collection »A.L.M. l'édition«, the artist is literally inscribed in every picture.

The cover of »A.L.M. l'édition« is itself a charged and visually stunning prelude to the overt games that unfold in Michel’s work as she plays with the application and meaning of contemporary visual codes. The gesture of the raised forefinger, which is firmly anchored in the daily prayers practiced by devout Muslims (it is used during the Islamic creed, the Shahada), has recently been exploited by the ISIS terror organization and has thus altered its meaning for many people.

The book comprises a total of thirty-two pages, with a combination of images that are not only used in pop cultural contexts like fashion but are also taken from the propagandist context of extremist movements.