In 1996, the American photographer Philip-Lorca diCorcia shot hundreds of frames in the Ukrainian city of Odessa.
With the exception of a single picture, the photographs were never published and disappeared in the artist’s archive. Reminded of his trip when seeing the city reappear on coverage of the present war, diCorcia revisited his archives and selected a series of these previously unseen photographs of the life and people of the historic port of Odessa and its surroundings. In this online exhibition from Sprüth Magers, a run of unlimited edition prints of these photographs are available for $250.00 each and proceeds will be donated to the Red Cross to aid the humanitarian crisis currently unfolding in Ukraine.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Across bucolic landscapes both rural and urban, and intimate portraits of daily life, diCorcia presents an image of a city during peacetime, resplendent in the freedoms that are being devastated by Putin’s invasion.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Motivated by a desire to help the people of Ukraine, and in response to the on-going conflict and the resultant humanitarian crisis, 100% of the proceeds of this presentation will be donated to the Red Cross, funding essential food, medicine, and clothing as well as first aid training and shelter for those affected across the country. The prints are available as an unlimited edition at $250 each, plus shipping and taxes, and will be produced and sent once the exhibition has ended.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Motivated by a desire to help the people of Ukraine, and in response to the on-going conflict and the resultant humanitarian crisis, 100% of the proceeds of this presentation will be donated to the Red Cross, funding essential food, medicine, and clothing as well as first aid training and shelter for those affected across the country. The prints are available as an unlimited edition at $250 each, plus shipping and taxes, and will be produced and sent once the exhibition has ended.
As a strategic and cultural hub on the Black Sea, Odessa, Ukraine’s third-largest city, occupies a unique position both geographically and within the psyche of the nation. It is known as a place of joviality and leisure, popular as a tourist destination for Ukrainians and Russians alike. Given its location, it also functions as a major logistical and economic centre serving the rest of Ukraine, and therefore an obvious target for the Russians too.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
As a strategic and cultural hub on the Black Sea, Odessa, Ukraine’s third-largest city, occupies a unique position both geographically and within the psyche of the nation. It is known as a place of joviality and leisure, popular as a tourist destination for Ukrainians and Russians alike. Given its location, it also functions as a major logistical and economic centre serving the rest of Ukraine, and therefore an obvious target for the Russians too.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Not knowing the language, diCorcia was shown around the city by an ex-soldier with whom he became friendly. It was his first time there and he didn’t know what to expect—it was at the time a nation that had not yet shed its Soviet identity, and he was always game to see something new. He mentions now of his time there, “I didn’t think of Odessa as Ukraine, I just thought of it as Odessa.”
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Not knowing the language, diCorcia was shown around the city by an ex-soldier with whom he became friendly. It was his first time there and he didn’t know what to expect—it was at the time a nation that had not yet shed its Soviet identity, and he was always game to see something new. He mentions now of his time there, “I didn’t think of Odessa as Ukraine, I just thought of it as Odessa.”
One initial point of familiarity that was captured by diCorcia are the Potemkin Steps, or Odessa Stairs, perhaps the most recognizable symbol of the city. Originally named the Primorsky Steps, they were renamed Potemkin on the fiftieth anniversary in 1955 of the mutiny aboard the battleship Potemkin, the inspiration for Sergei Eisenstein’s 1925 eponymous film.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
One initial point of familiarity that was captured by diCorcia are the Potemkin Steps, or Odessa Stairs, perhaps the most recognizable symbol of the city. Originally named the Primorsky Steps, they were renamed Potemkin on the fiftieth anniversary in 1955 of the mutiny aboard the battleship Potemkin, the inspiration for Sergei Eisenstein’s 1925 eponymous film.
In the film’s climactic scene, unarmed civilians including women and children are massacred, as a pram carrying a baby famously and slowly travels down the stairs. While the scene within this emotive, agitprop classic is not wholly historically accurate, diCorcia’s photograph of the steps presents the steps as they were in the film but also today, as a site where people go to enjoy themselves.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Indeed, Odessa is often referred to as the “mother city” by its people, immortalized in the song “Odessa Mama,” a celebration of its inimitable spirit. Translated into English, the first verse is sung:
Whoever has not been
In the beautiful city of Odessa
Has not seen the world
And knows nothing of progress
Who cares for Vienna or Paris,
They’re puddles, jokes, no comparison
Only in Odessa is
A paradise, I say.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Indeed, Odessa is often referred to as the “mother city” by its people, immortalized in the song “Odessa Mama,” a celebration of its inimitable spirit. Translated into English, the first verse is sung:
Whoever has not been
In the beautiful city of Odessa
Has not seen the world
And knows nothing of progress
Who cares for Vienna or Paris,
They’re puddles, jokes, no comparison
Only in Odessa is
A paradise, I say.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Scenes on the beaches, taken slightly outside Odessa but within the same bay, depict the popularity of the area as a tourist destination. Littered with sunken ships, the bay was also full of strange forms of sea life—not that this put off any visitors. A center of recreation and joy, which now is in danger of being savagely stripped away, diCorcia’s photographs depict the everyday life of a city at peace.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Scenes on the beaches, taken slightly outside Odessa but within the same bay, depict the popularity of the area as a tourist destination. Littered with sunken ships, the bay was also full of strange forms of sea life—not that this put off any visitors. A center of recreation and joy, which now is in danger of being savagely stripped away, diCorcia’s photographs depict the everyday life of a city at peace.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Similarly, in scenes from a market, strings of foraged mushroom drying on ropes are ogled by a small boy, whilst an older lady clutches a handful of chicks. diCorcia remarks it was a general market selling both produce and live animals.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Similarly, in scenes from a market, strings of foraged mushroom drying on ropes are ogled by a small boy, whilst an older lady clutches a handful of chicks. diCorcia remarks it was a general market selling both produce and live animals.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
A shirtless boy displays a bird of prey on his glove, others sat on the roof of a car, likely for sale for the popular sport of falconry. Perhaps the smiling ginger tabby is on offer too, or simply out with their owner, both taking respite from the sun under an umbrella.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
25.4 × 20.3 cm (image size)
30.5 × 25.4 cm (paper size)
10 × 8 inches (image size)
12 × 10 inches (paper size)
A shirtless boy displays a bird of prey on his glove, others sat on the roof of a car, likely for sale for the popular sport of falconry. Perhaps the smiling ginger tabby is on offer too, or simply out with their owner, both taking respite from the sun under an umbrella.
A group of young soldiers on a train carriage wear non-descript, olive uniforms, devoid of insignia nor bearing arms. Are they Russians or Ukrainians? A reminder that at the time this was a nation at peace, not a month into a full-blown invasion. It has been estimated today that up to 60% of the city’s residents have now left, with those remaining in fear of attack from Putin’s army.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
20.3 × 25.4 cm (image size)
25.4 × 30.5 cm (paper size)
8 × 10 inches (image size)
10 × 12 inches (paper size)
This run of unlimited edition prints are each available for $250.00 unframed, plus taxes and shipping. All proceeds will be donated to the Red Cross. Please contact us via the inquire button beneath the work of interest. A selection of diCorcia’s prints will also be on view at our galleries in London, Los Angeles and Berlin.
Philip-Lorca diCorcia
Odessa, 1996
A charity exhibition in aid of The Red Cross Ukraine Crisis Appeal
March 29–April 19, 2022
Online
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