I.N.R.I. [Hardcover]

Serge Bramly (Author), Bettina Rheims (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1999

I.N.R.I.: Iesus Nazareus Rex Iuderoum; Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews. The story of Jesus has been continually reinvented and reinterpreted, in fact and in fiction, over the course of the last two millennia. Yet the visual iconography has remained largely that of the Renaissance. Now, at the turn of the twenty-first century, writer Serge Bramly and photographer Bettina Rheims have turned to photography -- the most contemporary of art forms -- as well as to the original biblical texts and legends to present the life and death of Jesus in a series of stunning tableaux and an evocative, meaningful text.

The words of the apostles are retold in contemporary and accessible language, at once a rereading, synthesis, transposition, and commentary on the four gospels. In the photographs, characters such as Mary and Joseph, John the Baptist, and Mary Magdalene are placed in sites ranging from the beautiful island of Majorca, Spain, to an abandoned hospital on the outskirts of Paris. Jesus' birth occurs in a rough garage, where he is attended not only by the three kings but by people drawn from the surrounding streets; his miracles and cures address the ailments of all times; the Sermon on the Mount is a dramatic piece of performance art; and his crucifixion is that of every man, and every woman. Bramly and Rheims' re-creation of the ancient story is a true modern icon.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Bramly and Rheims either put their foot in it or put their best foot forward with the picture on the dust jacket. It shows a beautiful young woman, clad only in a loincloth, on a cross, imitating Christ. In the book, a dazzling photographic re-presentation of the life of Jesus, this image appears in a tryptich that dispels any hint of mockery. By itself on the cover, it may infuriate sacrilege-sensitive souls, who then, if they only glance at other pictures inside, may go ballistic. Reading the text and looking again, however, may calm some of them. That text, Bramly's work, is a serious conflation of the four gospels and a few noncanonical legends that modernizes nothing. Bramly and Rheims' photos are another story. They show mostly young people coiffed, made-up, and dressed in contemporary styles in contemporary settings, reenacting Gospel events, miracles and all. Initially surprising, these revisionings really just follow the lead of medieval and Renaissance Christian art, which portrayed biblical persons in their eras' trappings, too. Challenging and reverent. Ray Olson

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 218 pages
• Publisher: The Monacelli Press; 1St Edition edition (September 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580930433
• ISBN-13: 978-1580930437
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 1 x 11.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,716,513 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I.N.R.I., December 7, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: I.N.R.I. (Hardcover)

The cover of this book will make some outraged at first but I strongly recommend they read the text and then view the photos again. Unlike some photographers who use modern religious images to purposely provoke Christians this book is provocative yet very respectful of religion. The ancient telling of Christs life is beautifully shown in the setting of today with thought provoking images ranging from angels to his birth.Good view.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Making christianity vogue..., October 27, 1999

By 

Jim W. Song "cogitosum" (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I.N.R.I. (Hardcover)

That's right, this is Christ's life and gospels portrayed as if it were for a special millenial edition of Vogue. Quick summary: lots of dramatic stills of beautiful, androgenous, young adults playing the roles of Christ, Mary, the Apostles, Judas, etc. in contemporary settings like a garage (aka, the manger) or a ghetto in the USA.

Even if you are staunchly anti-christian, the images have their own evocative appeal. Re-envisioning the monopoly of renaissance icongraphy into contemporary media and form is an interesting premise (which the book jacket alludes to) but the images smack too much of hipsterism and model-pretty allure to stand as a serious enough retelling of an old story. It does, however, reinvigorate and loosen the stodgy fixity that bibil ical references often have for many folks. (I realize these last two sentences may sound a bit at odds with each other but the book does bring up contradictory feelings). The book may bring up questions of blashpemy but I think the textual support helps substantiate the photographs which otherwise would appear as mere stylizations passing for something more meaningful. There's quite a bit of frontal nudity which may offend many Christians and prudes but as the Book of Ecclesiastes says, and I only paraphrase, "For what does a person who has never experienced temptation really know?".

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars with a sort of esprit ..., July 27, 2005

By 

FrizzText "frizz" (Wuppertal) - See all my reviews

This review is from: I.N.R.I. (Hardcover)

Like Renaissance artists who transposed the Jesus-story to Florence, the famous French Photographer Bettina Rheims (* December 18, 1952, Neuilly-sur-Seine, Paris, descendant of Amschel Moses Rothschild) and Serge Bramly (* January 31, 1949, Tunisia, now french philosopher and scientist of art history) tried to ignore the visual traditions, largely that of the Renaissance, willing to create a new modern iconography by turning the subject to photography. A little bit irritating, because the project is fluctuating between serious art and stylistic kitsch, influenced by quotations of art-history and, on the other hand, influenced by modern advertising camerawork. Illustrating the 'Xmas-scene in the stable to Bethlehem they try an optical translation into our present: Jesus is born in the location of an automobile repair workshop illuminated by the pair of headlights of a small transporter van. Instead of a donkey a cat watches the birth, mother Maria sits easily dressed not on straw but on a cement bag, in place of shepherds some garage-mechanics hurried in, who present daisy-flowers to Mary, taking care not to stamp into the puddles of oil on the floor. Of course it is an impressive, strange attack on our figurative conception traditions, which can be forgotten not easily. We see the naked-dancing Salome with the bloody head of the Johannes on the tray; we see Mary Magdalene with legs spread, breasts exposed and stiletto heels; we see locations in the Hospital Cochin, others on the isle Mallorca - and after all (or at first?) we are shocked by Jesus hanging on the cross as a naked young woman, clad only in a loincloth - seen on the book cover; but if you are looking inside, you will notice, that the woman is crucified on the left cross of three, the middle-cross is empty, on the right side you will notice a man. But please consider: Jesus' crucifixion is a symbol for every human being, women inclusive. Nevertheless it provoked just enough outrage in Europe. However I think this project shows an acceptable way of searching for a new kind of modern iconography. Between all infuriated sacrilege-sensitive souls of the political correctness-wing you can find some amusing stories of art-reception: The models, actors and musicians, posing for the great last evening diner-scene - they a few weeks later established a music group with the name "12 Apostles". Bettina Rheims and Serge Bramly linked gravity and irony, majesty and triviality - maybe this is the sort of esprit, which can only prosper in France ...