Ecotopia at the International Center of Photography

One of the reasons for my extended stay in New York is to see the art shows in town. On the top of my list was the International Center of Photography. And since I'm now a member at the Griffin Museum in Winchester, I get free admission. The current show at the ICP is a group show called Ecotopia on view through January 7, 2007. The biggest attraction for me to see this show was Catherine Chalmers, a photographer whose interest is primarily of ecology. I was introduced to her work by Ken, who gave me a copy of her book Food Chain. As I was doing some digging online just now, I found out that Chalmers' work can be seen at the current DeCordova exhibition Going Ape: Confronting Animals in Contemporary Art, on view until January 7th as well.

Ecotopia was one of the best photography shows I've seen. It showcases the work of 40 photographers around the theme of nature and our interactions with nature. Certainly there were subthemes that I expected -- the destructions of nature by humans. But there are also more subtle and neutral subthemes about the natural order of things in nature. Catherine Chalmers' exhibition piece turned out to be a short film rather than still photography. The film depicts a cockroach's emergence from a body of water, his journey through the woods, and eventually his demise by becoming prey to a frog.

I was also excited to find out that among the 40 participating in the show was Wang Qingsong. His website always seems to be too busy to load, and so I suspect he's doing very well. In an issue of Aperture Magazinen this year I had first seen Wang's work Come, Come, three staged images depicting waves of political protestors and the irony that they leave behind a mess of abandoned banners and other garbage--all this angry concern about China's polical future while neglecting the environment. Wang's work is full of irony and challenges herd mentality. He's one of the most refreshing contemporary Chinese artists who made his name known internationally. Most Chinese artists with international exhibits have a tendency to reinforce western stereotypes about China, while much of Wang's work is about Chinese identity and integrity in the face of globalization and commercialism.

Lowell & the Lowell Photography Weekend

Last weekend (November 11 and 12) was the Lowell Photography Weekend, which involved five participating galleries and their respective photography-related exhibitions. I visited Lowell mainly because of the Photo2006 Black and White Classic exhibition, where my one piece "View from Ladder" was displayed in the back section. The juror of the exhibition was Ron Rosenstock, who had studied with Paul Caponigro and Minor White for a number of years. The selected works were really, really wonderful. I can honestly say that I loved and admired every single piece there (and I was damned lucky to have gotten one piece in!). When you first walk into the gallery, four of Paul Wainwright's stunning pieces from his Spirals series (pictured above) are directly in front of you. I believe some of the prints in this show are not on his website. Paul Wainwright is the juror for the exhibition closing this Saturday November 18 at artSPACE@16, called PROOF: in Black and White (see my previous blog post). The Lowell Brush Gallery show is really wonderful, but its lack of publicity is a shame. I can't find an image for it on the web, but Meg Birnbaum's "Cowgirl" is a very memorable image. Meg's work is also exhibited at artSPACE@16. Another familiar name in this exhibit from PROOF is Silke Hase. I wished I could remember more names and I wished there is an updated page on The Brush Gallery's website, but there isn't. I understand that it's a volunteer-run organization and that website updates are not easy (I neglect mine all the time and do not update this very blog often enough), but one could only imagine that it must be difficult for the press to publish any content on it without even any information on WHO are in the show. I tried to obtain postcards for the show, but there were none left when I dropped off my work... *sigh* The biggest disappointment was that the juror Ron Rosenstock was not there during the opening reception. This show really is fantastic, but as far as I know, it didn't make it into the Globe. It runs until January 7th at the Brush Gallery.

My husband Ken and friends Joel and Maya accompanied me through all but one of the participating galleries at the Lowell Photography Weekend. Ken and I had visited Lowell for a Dar Williams concert over the summer one evening, but we had never walked around Lowell before. And I believe it was the first visit for Joel and Maya. I was surprised at how many museums and galleries there were in Lowell. The Whistler House Museum of Art has some good quality work exhibited in its main member's exhibition and its digital photography exhibition in the outer gallery and is worth visiting. On our way to the various galleries, we stopped by the Revolving Museum. The installation piece in the lobby and the kitchen walls filled with painted matzohs are some of its most impressive features. The current exhibition is "Race, Class, Gender ≠ Character." It's an interesting theme. One video installation that I almost didn't pay attention to turned out to be the most poignant piece to me. I think the title was "After the Smile." It candidly captures different groups of tourists posing for someone else's camera in front of some popular tourist attraction. When the posed shot is over the smile immediately fades and are often replaced by frowns, annoyance, or dejectedness. The Revolving Museum has one of the better websites of the above mentioned galleries and museums in Lowell.

The revitalized Lowell is a beautiful place with many old mills converted into modern luxury condos and museums. One can see that much money has been raised to make it beautiful, but how does it keep running as a self-sustaining economy? Does UMass Lowell offer enough consumers for its retail businesses? Are there enough art collectors and buyers to frequent its many museums and galleries?

PROOF: In Black and White, artSPACE@16 in Malden

I've mentioned the current show PROOF: In Black and White several times in my blogs, but I haven't actually taken the time to talk about my thoughts on the show itself, artSPACE@16, nor Sand T -- the phenomenal artist, gallery founder and director.

Let's talk about the show itself. PROOF: In Black and White is a juried exhibition (for those not familiar with the term -- it means that the participating artworks are chosen by a juror, who is often an expert on the subject--in this case, photography). The juror is Paul Wainwright, a traditional black and white large format (referring those old large cameras that you use with a black cloth over your head) photographer. The requirement to enter the show is that traditional film and darkroom processing must be used to produced these images. On the jury day, Paul went around and picked the pieces judging solely on their artistic merit and without seeing the artists' names.

When I dropped off my work, I knew I had tough competition. The caliber of the work present was very impressive. And on the opening of the show, I felt immensely honored to be exhibiting my work among such wonderful photographs--and I learned a lot of their wonderful techniques. Here are some of artists with the most striking pieces and unique techniques. Paul Weiner's work shown here is one of them. He used a large format camera set on long exposure and flashed a flashlight over the room to draw patterns on the wall.

Chris Yeager's medium format studio portrait of singer-songwriter Rose Polenzani is shown on the left.

Silke Hase's Holga image (shown here on right) gives me new inspiration to try a Holga.

Erik Hansen's (left) abstract long/double exposure of a model set up in his studio.

Robert William Streeter prints and processes a single image with multiple negatives--American Sarum is shown below right.

Elsa Campbell (left) brushed developer onto silver gelatin paper, instead of putting it into a developer bath as you would normally, thereby creating a unique print every time.

Now about the gallery artSPACE@16 and Sand T... This is the fourth show I've attended there, though it's the first time I'm exhibiting. For first time visitors who don't know anything about the place, they are often shocked to find that it is a converted garage in a secluded residential neighborhood in Malden. It's a hidden gem and well worth the trek. Sand T had pretty much converted her garage into a gallery using her own pocket money and created such professional exhibitions that got wonderful media attention. It is rated in the Boston Globe as one of the best galleries by Raphaela Platow, curator at the Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University. Sand T has worked tirelessly for years to bring this sort of attention to artSPACE@16. One can only imagine the struggle. Oh, did I mention that she doesn't even ask for commissions from her artists who make a sale??? I was flabbergasted when I heard this. She says she'll only hope for donations from the artists, and I can only hope that the artists know about this donation policy. Having just had a one-year project of a gallery myself (what was Pigmentia Gallery in Medford is now run by Marc Gurton and renamed 13FOREST Gallery), I know how tough it is to juggle the show schedules, getting money and time to have exhibitions. I am relieved that I'm on the other side now, but it certainly gives me a special appreciation for the gallery directors who put together shows for us -- and the commissions are justified.

As a person, Sand T is warm, generous, helpful and embracing to all artists around her. She is resourceful and can literally build walls and pedestals, paint and do anything to make any space look like a museum. When I first opened Pigmentia Gallery, Sand T introduced herself to me and connected me to not only the Malden art community but many artist communities all over Massachusetts. She is a very talented artist in her own right, though I know it must be hard to find time to do her own work with so many exhibitions going on. From this link you can see some of her work: http://www.artspaceat16.com/sandt.htm. Sand T crosses many media disciplines. She's an installation artist, sculptor, painter, and photographer. Just spend five minutes with her and you'll feel energized.

13FOREST Gallery

For those of you who don't know this, Marc Gurton, my accountant/business partner has taken on the gallery space and started 13FOREST Gallery.  The gallery has expanded its inventory to include many "beautiful, functional things" such as ceramic, glass, and fabric work by local artists and craftsmen.  His grand opening yesterday was a great success.  We're working on bringing his products online to help him expand the business beyond Medford Square.

Julie Thacker and Chris Yeager

I was supposed to be in NYC this weekend trying on bridesmaid's dresses for my sister's wedding. I got sick and just couldn't make it through a 5-hour drive yesterday. So now I'm home.

At SandT's b&w juried exhibit PROOF, I had the pleasure of meeting a very interesting couple -- Chris Yeager and Julie Thacker. Chris is a wonderful portraitist who is exhibiting at the same show (See Chris's work here at http://www.chrisyeager.com/new/slides/), and Julie is a writer (her website is http://www.juliathacker.com/).

I just read Julie's short story "The Funeral of the Man Who Wasn't Dead Yet." It is the first half of a novella currently published on AGNI, and it is beautiful.

There are several things that struck me about the story. The story wasn't actually about the actual funeral at all, but it was more about HOW this funeral came to be. Our anti-hero Houston Webb can be seen simultaneously as both a narcissistic womanizer and a freedom-loving spirit who misses his roots back in the Kentucky mountains. I dislike him but sympathize at the same time (it's hard to make a reader feel that way). Houston has moved to urban Ohio to make a living, but he's out of place there. He has high aims to be like Honest Abe and makes small gestures to be a father figure, but does not live up to his own expectations. He seems to want a funeral while he is alive so people can say nice things about him and give him affirmations about being a good person, not unlike how he needs the constant affirmations from Lana about everything he does. Another fascinating element is the setting of post-WWII America (late 50's/early 60's?), where women's roles changed drastically. Lana is progressive enough to divorce her first husband, but she's also human and needs love and companionship, which she hopes to find in Houston. And in order to make him happy, she succumbs to his temperamental mood swings and demands, even at the sacrifice of her children's happiness. Even though the setting is several decades back in time, the characters and their problems are timeless.

Got into another juried show!!! Woohoo!

I got accepted into another juried black and white photography show. This one is in Lowell at The Brush Gallery juried by Ron Rosenstock, who had studied under Minor White. When I dropped off the entries in person earlier this week, it was my second time ever visiting Lowell -- the first being the Dar Williams concert back in August. I was amazed at how beautiful Lowell is. The city really spent a lot of money reviving it. The art and culture there is really impressive.

The entry that was accepted was "View from Ladder" from the Anasazi Ruins series. When I took this image, it was a very significant moment for me, as I am deathly afraid of heights. This ladder was the top of a very long series of ladders that led to the cave dwellings of the Anasazis in what is now the Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico. I almost chickened out of climbing the ladders, but my husband Ken coached me through it. And so, if it weren't for all his encouragement, this image would never have come into being.

Wedding in Narragansett, RI this weekend.

I shot a wonderful wedding yesterday in Narragansett, RI. After so many days of rain, it was wonderful to have a clear weekend. Luckily, there were some nice clouds in the sky to diffuse shadows, creating some very dramatic portraits by the sea. AND incredibly, in the evening around 7:30 we had a rainbow in the sky -- without the rain! My assistant Amy and I posed the couple out on the deck of the Towers with the rainbow behind them. It was beautiful. The couple themselves were very photogenic as well -- here are the engagement portraits I took of them back in February. I didn't get back from the wedding until 12am and didn't get to bed until around 2am.

I woke up this morning at 7am and drove an hour west to North Grafton to meet my clients who are getting married on August 5.

Then Ken and I went to see Pirates of the Caribbean 2. I think Ken enjoyed it a lot more than me. I think it was a bit too long and neither as witty nor tight a script as the first one. The effects were fun, and there were great moments. An interesting discovery was that the actor who played Norrington was actually Jack Davenport, the same guy who played Steve in Coupling (a British sitcom that Ken and I absolutely loved). We had seen Pirates 1 before watching Coupling so we didn't realize it then.

I met with the book club this past Thursday and talked about Intuition by Allegra Goodman. I have 60 more pages to go, but I am enjoying it a lot -- I just keep getting interrupted. This is probably the best recently published book we read in the book club since I joined. Allegra Goodman is really skilled at character development -- she gets into every character's psyche and shows their different motives in this drama in a medical research lab. I know that doesn't sound too exciting -- a drama in a research lab, but in fact, it is. It's a story about overachieving young scientists trying to make something of themselves, and in the process, we get jealousy, politics, whistle-blowing, fraud, and sabotage--all stemming from the desire to achieve something great and having a successful career. I never worked in a research lab, but I had lived through my twenties in a corporate world just as competitive as the medical research world depicted in the book, and the Allegra really captures very well the mindset of someone fresh out of school.

Hoping to both catch up to Ken's recommended list AND satisfy my book club required reading, I brought in several books to recommend to the ladies, and I'm thrilled that they agreed on Silk by Allesandro Barrico. That will be the September book club selection! I'm already done with the August one because I wanted to hand it off to another book club member. The book for August is The G-String Murders by Gypsy Rose Lee. We had chosen this because Gypsy, a famous burlesque dancer, sounded so intriguing in the book February House -- an earlier non-fiction book we read on, well, the February House, essentially an artist commune in Brooklyn that housed Gypsy, W.H. Auden, Benjamin Britten, Paul Bowles, Carson McCullers, and Salvadore Dali, among others.

I would like to add Call of the Wild to my reading list for Alaska, but I have to first finish Initution, Silk, Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro, and Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. I'm searching for other books with Alaska settings too. I think it makes a huge difference when you're reading about a place that you're actually visiting. I think I loved All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy that much more because I was visiting Texas at the time.