Frieze London, Regent’s Park | October 2–6, 2019
An Immersive and Playful Exploration of Portraiture
British artistic duo Walter & Zoniel continue their ongoing collaboration with MATCHESFASHION at Frieze London 2019, bringing together their signature blend of conceptual art and immersive public installations. Known for their ability to seamlessly merge joy, humour, surrealism, and beauty, the artists present a dynamic, interactive experience that connects Regent’s Park, MATCHESFASHION.COM, and the brand’s flagship townhouse, 5 Carlos Place.
At the heart of this collaboration is WZ.RAINBOWCAM, a bold new work that reimagines the self-portrait in an era of digital exhibitionism and shifting notions of privacy.
WZ.RAINBOWCAM: A New Way to See Yourself
Situated within Frieze London, the WZ.RAINBOWCAM is a giant-format box camera designed to engage visitors in a playful yet thought-provoking photographic experience. Users are invited to press themselves against a wall of rainbow-coloured flatbed scanners, allowing their images to be digitally captured and layered into an abstracted collage.
These portraits are then instantly displayed on screens within the booth and emailed to the sitters, offering a visually fragmented, yet uniquely personal, reflection of their identity. The process requires close physical contact with the screens, inviting participants to explore their relationship with intimacy, self-presentation, and digital interaction.
Through this joyous and surreal experience, the installation examines the proliferation of self-portraits in the digital age, questioning the very nature of privacy and exhibitionism in contemporary photography.
Demystifying the Digital Photograph
With the WZ.RAINBOWCAM, Walter & Zoniel expose the mechanics of digital photography, drawing a fascinating parallel between early photographic techniques and the ways we engage with images today. Just as people were once captivated by the magic of early daguerreotypes and salt prints, today we remain equally entranced by the digital self-image and its modes of creation. By allowing participants to both engage with and observe the photographic process, the artists encourage a renewed awareness of photography as both a spectacle and a tool for self-reflection.
Commission a Unique Walter & Zoniel Portrait at 5 Carlos Place
In addition to the interactive Frieze installation, guests will have a rare opportunity to commission a one-of-a-kind photographic portrait at MATCHESFASHION’s flagship townhouse, 5 Carlos Place.
Here, Walter & Zoniel will use their renowned WZBOX camera—a walk-in camera obscura with an integrated darkroom—to create life-sized portraits that possess an ethereal, otherworldly quality.
The WZBOX process is entirely unique:
The subject sits outside the camera, facing the large-format lens.
Photographic paper is directly exposed inside the camera—eliminating the need for a negative.
Each portrait is meticulously hand-painted and gilded, resulting in one-of-a-kind images that blend historic photographic influences with contemporary innovation.
Every piece bears the marks of its creation—striations, brush strokes, and fingerprints—offering a raw, unfiltered depiction that challenges traditional notions of perfection and beauty.
Previous sitters captured using the WZBOX camera include Eddie Redmayne, Lindsay Lohan, and street youth in London’s East End, each immortalized through this remarkably tactile and painterly photographic technique.
Walter & Zoniel x MATCHESFASHION
Curated By Carrie Scott
Walter & Zoniel: Making Art Accessible
Renowned for their ability to engage diverse audiences, Walter & Zoniel work across multiple media, including photography, installation, sculpture, film, and performance. Their work draws inspiration from early photographic techniques, such as salt prints, ambrotypes, and tintypes, while continually developing their own experimental approaches to portraiture.
Committed to making art accessible beyond traditional gallery spaces, their projects have been exhibited everywhere from the Venice Biennale, National Portrait Gallery, and Tate Britain to warehouses, West End clubs, and immersive public installations.
Reimagining the Self-Portrait
Through their collaboration with MATCHESFASHION at Frieze London, Walter & Zoniel offer an exciting redefinition of contemporary portraiture—one that is at once intimate and performative, immediate yet deeply considered.
Whether through the bold, kaleidoscopic engagement of WZ.RAINBOWCAM or the timeless, handcrafted artistry of the WZBOX camera, this exhibition invites audiences to reconsider what it means to capture an image of oneself in the digital age.
