The "Losers"

 

Ten days from now is the opening of my very first photography exhibition. Needless to say, I'm pretty excited. Each photographer in the show is displaying six images that share a common theme. I chose to use photographs I had taken in art museums and as I sifted through them, two themes became apparent. The first was a pestering insistency, in some of the images, to showcase the museum buildings as works of art in and of themselves. The aesthetic vision of the museum's architect is something to be reveled in, as is the art that furnishes it. 

The second theme I found suddenly apparent in the photographs is the self-reflexive relationship between art and its viewers. Ansel Adams said that "There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer." I believe he's correct. A work of art will always possess both the artist's intention and the viewer's interpretation. In certain images, I tried to take this concept a step further by capturing the viewer at a moment when he/she is internally processing the work before him/her - thus embedding it with his/her own meaning - while simultaneously becoming the unsuspecting subject of my own artistic vision through the click of the shutter.

The preview party is on Friday, October 1st at 8pm at WithInSight Hall (4001 N Ravenswood Ave). If you can't make it on Friday, my studio is also part of the Ravenswood Art Walk on Saturday and Sunday (October 2nd and 3rd) from 11am to 6pm. And if that's just all around a bad weekend for you, my photos will be hanging in the studio until May of next year, and I'd be happy to show you them at any time.

Since I'd like to maintain some element of surprise for those of you who come to the exhibition, I've decided to refrain from posting the six images I chose and instead show you some of the "losing" images that didn't quite make the final cut. They'll give you insight into my themes, as well as an idea of my aesthetic when it comes to this subject. Enjoy and I hope to see you at the opening!