Artist Statement

Pari Dukovic Captures Miami City Ballet’s 40th Season in “RISE”

In photographer Pari Dukovic’s new exhibition “RISE,” attention turns to the disciplined bodies that make the art of ballet possible. Across 29 images composed with dancers of Miami City Ballet during the company’s 40th anniversary season, Dukovic isolates moments where years of repetition and effort are transformed into lightness and precise composition. “What the viewer perceives as grace is, in reality, the result of deep physical and emotional discipline,” Dukovic said. For curator and gallery owner Bruce Halpryn, the show is less about ballet than about sustained attention, repetition, and devotion.

Pari Dukovic, Surrender, 2026. Archival pigment prints. Courtesy of the artist and VISU Contemporary. …

Bio: Pari Dukovic is an award-winning photographer working across the genres of portraiture, fashion, and reportage. Informed by a fascination with Old Master painting and Renaissance sculpture, his work encompasses both his art history background and rigorous technical training, resulting in distinctly colorful and atmospheric images. Over the past decade, Dukovic’s editorial work has been published in major magazines in the United States and Europe. Most notably, he was the staff photographer of The New Yorker from 2012 to 2018, serving as its main photographer capturing visuals for the magazine’s influential profile features.

Other editorial highlights include Dukovic being chosen to photograph all six covers of Time Magazine’s special Time 100 issue. Dukovic’s photography won a 2018 Clio Entertainment Gold Campaign of the year for Pose, the groundbreaking drama television series. His work has been collected by The Smithsonian. Dukovic photographed the cover of Barack Obama’s memoir, A Promised Land, as well as for the cover of NASCAR legend Jimmie Johnson’s recent book. For Rizzoli’s recent tome, New York City Ballet Choreography & Couture, Dukovic photographed 129 costumes on 11 dancers, representing a decade of fashion designers’ collaborations with the ballet.

Title of work: Surrender

Where to see it: VISU Contemporary Gallery in Miami Beach, through November 21.

Three words to describe this work:  Powerful, dynamic, liberating.

What was on your mind at the time: The beauty of human connection, the freedom of movement, and the courage to let go.

Portrait of Pari Dukovic. Photo by Muhammet Bencoglu. …

An interesting feature that’s not immediately noticeable: The contrast between control and chaos. The suspended bodies feel almost weightless, while the crashing water introduces unpredictability and raw energy.

How the work reflects your practice as a whole: My practice is about finding the extraordinary within the human form. I’m drawn to moments when movement, light, and emotion come together to create something unexpected. I want the viewer to look beyond the immediate image and discover the strength, vulnerability, and human connection that exist beneath the surface.

One song that captures the work’s essence: “Unstoppable” by Sia.

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