I went to Niagara for the same reason as the honeymooners and suicide jumpers… the relentless thunder of the Falls just calls for big passion – Alec Soth

Alec Soth came to prominence in 2004 with his documentary Sleeping by the Mississippi, a poetic and deeply enigmatic account of the river and its people. Here the distinctive landscape and individuals he encountered were captured through a series of pictures suggesting an imaginary, dream-like meandering journey of their very own. Soth is continually intrigued with the act of photography in relation to different states of consciousness making pictures that have compelling formal qualities yet are lyrical, open-ended and pensive studies of the dynamics between people and place.

Like previous work, Niagara is borne out of an immersive experience. It is an intimate study of the motels, their visitors and workers; of lovers and romantic tragedy that Soth finds so symbolic of the sublime waterfalls that separate Canada and the U.S.A; a phenomenon that has created the touristic and popular imagination of ‘Niagara’ the place, but also as an allegory for human relationships.

Working with 8 x 10 camera, these pictures are complex and involve considerable time in their making. The resulting images suggest interior worlds of secrecy, propriety and transgression, excitement and banality, romance and uncertainty as we move from honeymooning couples, family holidays, motel signage, love letters and the dramatic recurring images of the Falls. Niagara is a fascinating journey into the psychological lure of place and the states of mind it engenders. Alec Soth lives in Minneapolis, USA. He joined Magnum Photos as a Nominee in 2004 and became an Associate in 2006.

This exhibition has been produced with the kind assistance of Magnum Photos, Alec Soth and Gagosian Gallery.