Portfolio course offered at the Light Factory

DEFINING YOUR VISION AND DEVELOPING YOUR PERSONAL STYLE
Many artists are defined by a signature style. This vision can be exemplified by subject matter, technique or other methods that make their work readily identifiable. This course will help guide you to a more mature vision of your work. Editing and critiques of existing work, and examinations of the signature styles of master photographers, will help bring your own personal vision into focus. Students will be asked to bring a selection of their best work and related outtakes (contact sheets, work prints, digital files). They will be encouraged (but not required) to create new work or print new discoveries that fit their theme. Our goal will be to create a 12-15 image portfolio of your signature style.
I am encouraging my past students to post/link to the work they created in my previous class. The next class starts soon, so visit http://www.light-factory.org/defining-your-vision for more details.

Hanging "Delugians" at Salomon Arts gallery

Installation of Delugians exhibition
Click on the link to view a time lapse slide show of the installation of the exhibition at the tribeca gallery.

Actual Deluge greets "Delugians" opening in NYC

It seemed somewhat appropriate that at the hour that the Delugians show was to open, NYC would be hit by a poltergeist/tempest/tornado. While the weather certainly curtailed some of the expected attendance, the turnout was steady. Universally the guests were impressed and moved by the exhibition. Stella Kramer has written a nice review of the show on her blog, Stellazine.

More on the tornado from the NY Times:

Most of the New York City subway system was back in service by this evening’s rush hour after a fierce morning storm disrupted transit service throughout much of the region and unleashed a rare and destructive tornado that whipped southwestern Brooklyn with winds of up to 135 miles an hour.

The storm dropped about 3 inches of rain on the New York metropolitan area in about an hour, flooding major thoroughfares, cutting off power to thousands of homes and causing confusion that lingered through a humid, sweaty day.

Gov. Eliot Spitzer of New York o said this was the third time in seven months that a sudden downpour had brought the transit system to its knees. “The timing and intensity of the storm took us by surprise,” said Elliot G. Sander, the chief executive of the M.T.A. “The intensity of the storm brought torrential rainfall in a short period of time, overwhelming both our pumps and the sewer system that is needed to accept the pump water.”

As the storm knocked down power lines, more than 4,000 customers throughout the city lost power.

Pete Chiaramonte, 41, said he saw what he thought was the storm touching down at around 5.30 a.m. near the corner of 37th Street and 13th Avenue. “It was a funnel shape,” he said. “It looked kind of black and blue,” adding, “it was way up high and came right down on the roof of” a department store. “Pieces of the roof were all over the place. It was a big bang.”

New Orleans Photo-based artists take Manhattan

"Delugians" exhibit at Salomon Arts showcases the work of lens-based artists whose work was influenced by the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

83 Leonard Street, 4th floor (Tribeca) , New York, NY-  September 16-October 16, 2010. Opening reception: Thursday, September 16, 6-9pm

Graphic images of a landscape of destruction…New Orleanians have seen enough of them. As the 5th anniversary of the Hurricanes and flooding that devastated New Orleans and the Gulf coast approaches, many of these images will, no doubt, resurface. The collection of art in "Delugians" focuses on a different aspect of the aftermath, how the emotional, social, and psychological effects of this catastrophe manifest themselves in the work of 4 lens-based artists. Curator, Bryce Lankard, has worked closely with many artists, particularly photographers, in the New Orleans post-Katrina environment, most notably through the foundation of the New Orleans Photo Alliance, a non-profit photographic arts organization that began shortly after the natural and man-made disaster.

Iconic Jazz Photographer, Herman Leonard, passes away at 87.

"We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of Herman Leonard yesterday, Saturday, August 14, 2010.  Herman was a rare human being, always giving and compassionate.  It goes without saying Herman was a great photographer and artist, who loved Jazz music and created a stunning visual collection of the world he loved so much.  (http://www.hermanleonard.com/)

If you are not fortunate enough to already be familiar with his name, no doubt you have seen his work. Simply put, he created icons. HIs distinctive way of capturing the Jazz world has influenced the unconscious way we perceive and visualize jazz. Smoky and spotlit, intimate and joyful, he gave us access to the legends of the genre. 

His photographs are also a reflection of how he lived, youthful, joyful, and giving. After having lived and worked in Paris, New York, and San Francisco, he moved to New Orleans in 1991, where he found a place perfectly suited to call home. "When I moved here, I found my place," he said in 2003. "I've never felt myself more comfortable in my skin than New Orleans." I had the rare pleasure of working with Herman soon after he moved to New Orleans. My magazine, Tribe, was doing a profile on our new resident legend and I had the privilege of spending many hours with him pouring over his books and images to select the best work for our story. I still have the book with our original post-it notes bookmarking our final selections. At his 70th birthday party, held in a French Quarter restaurant whose walls were filled with his images, Herman held court with the vitality and curiosity of a teenager and engaged everyone in attendance. He spoke of the new projects he was excited about and I recall being envious of his energy and hoping I would have half of it when I turned 70.

Herman Leonard's legacy also serves as a reminder of the importance and fragility of our national culture and heritage. His home in New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005 was in the Lakeshore area that received eight feet of flood water. He lost 8,000 original prints to the flood waters and yet his story is a lucky one. He managed to save all his negatives and could begin printing again. Imagine what we would have lost otherwise. He evacuated to the Los Angeles area and set up a studio there, but continued to be involved in the New Orleans community. He was exceedingly generous, donating his prints to benefit non-profits, including the New Orleans Photo Alliance, which was launched after Hurricane Katrina. 

It should come as no surprise then that, in lieu of flowers, Herman's family has asked that donations be made to The New Orleans Musicians Clinic, an organization close to his heart. " "Above all, enjoy the music"  - Herman Leonard : March 6, 1923 - August 14, 2010

New Photography exhibits opening in North Carolina

A handful of new and varied photography exhibits are slated to open in late August and September. Two shows, "Suspicious Minds"  and "Steve Perille: Unfiltered" have opening receptions at the Light Factory in Charlotte on September 16th. And if you are interested in a bit of a photo field trip, "Underneath the Underwing" opened on August 21st at Through this Lens gallery in Durham.

"Underneath the Underwing", by Goodloe Suttler, is described as a very close look at the textures, palettes and patterns of select butterflies from around the world.  Suttler uses highly magnified views of moths and butterflies. to create images that are visually stunning by starkly contrasting his subjects against a black background, and exposing wing scales and colors unseen by the naked eye. 

Suspicious Minds

Aug 23, 2010 - Feb 6, 2011 in the Knight Gallery

Opening Reception: Thursday, Sept. 16  

Surrealism, a movement that began in response to the atrocities of World War I, has continued to have a strong influence on artists today. " There is some debate when and if Surrealism as an organized movement officially ended. Nevertheless, many artists and photographers continued to incorporate surrealist ideas on a more personal level into their work throughout the 20th Century and into the 21st. Today, there are new artists who are exploring their desires to embrace the unknown depths of the subconscious, fantastic and mysterious, in a philosophical and visual way." (from curator statement by Dennis Kiel) 

Suspicious Minds examines this phenomenon by featuring new work by Jerry Uelsmann, a major practitioner of surreal photography dating back to the late 1960s, as well as images by contemporary photographers and film/installation artists, all with different and creative approaches to surrealist imagery: Robert and Shana ParkeHarrison (environmental and political), Tom Chambers (fragility of life), Joel Whitaker (reinventing the family snapshot), and Malena Bergmann (spiritual). The work of Jerry Uelsmann alone should be a great reason to see this show. Uelsmann has been practicing his craft of creating mind-bending images long before anyone ever heard the word Photoshop. Through a meticulous, time-consuming process of darkroom magic, he has dedicated his career to surrealist imagery with a tenacity that is unparalleled. 

Steve Perille: Unfiltered

Aug 16, 2010 - January 30, 2011 in the Middleton McMillan Gallery

Opening Reception: Thursday, Sept. 16

This exhibition is part of the LIght Factory’s “In Our Own Backyard” series, and features the photographs of Steve Perille, who was a staff photographer for The Charlotte Observer in the 1970's.  The work on display falls into the great tradition of the street photographer. HIs work has been compared to the greats of the social landscape documentary traditions such as Walker Evans, Robert Frank and Dorothea Lange.

"Steve Perille’s photographs are deceptively simple. They are of real people doing real things, and of real places that are seemingly unremarkable.  Through his photographs we are drawn to the beauty of ordinary moments. We walk right by what he chooses to photograph; we filter out the ordinary and pay no attention. His vision of the world is unfiltered; he sees the ordinary as special. Life itself is what he sees with seemingly little effort." (Statement from Guest Curator, Byron Baldwin)