Julian Rosefeldt, Asylum

Indian flower sellers, Turkish trash collectors, Chinese cooks, and Thai prostitutes--Munich-born artist Julian Rosefeldt confronts the viewers of his video project, Asylum , with stereotypical European views of foreigners and ethnic minorities. In his seductively opulent tableaux vivants, he exaggerates and parodies popular conceptions about roles and professions, while embedding his protagonists in strangely surreal scenes and ritual contexts. This publication features photographs taken during the shooting of the video, film stills from Rosefeldt's nine Asylum films, probing essays, and an interview with the artist.