Black-Market Records

'Contraband' is an extraordinary series of works by New York photographer Taryn Simon. Compiled over 

 five days, the book documents over 1,000 items that have been seized by customs at John F Kennedy 

International Airport. It's amazing what people will try to get away with carrying or sending - the objects 

in question range from an African cane rat infested with maggots, to a South American pig head, counterfeit 

American Express traveller's Cheques, gold dust and heroin. Often it's the way that the banned objects have 

been concealed that is the most intriguing of all. 

The book reveals the dark brass tracks of America and the contradictions of a system that we often try to forget. 

 Each of Simon's photographs is composed with forensic care. They are like a scientific record which leaves no 

room for ambiguity. Yet the personal nature and the geometry of the objects themselves means they are often 

cast in a seductive and haunting light. The result is perfectly illuminating - humanising even the most forbidden fruit.

'Contraband' by Taryn Simon is published by Steidl this month (steidlville.com), and an exhibition will also open at 

Lever House, New York on September 30 and run until December 31, 2010 (gagosian.com).

Words by Zoe Limberis