This yesterday, the 4th, I made the long trek 25 miles north of Boston to Beverly, MA where the Monsterrat College of Art was hosting the opening reception of their new exhibit, America Now. This show takes into account the main geographical zones of America and combines them into a spectacularly varied visual expression. Photographers Ben Huff, Alec Soth, Shane Lavalette, Zoe Strauss, Daniel Cheek and Laura McPhee contribute to the mix and bring some fantastically articulated views of the regions they explore.
Walking into the gallery space I was slapped in the face by this image by Laura McPhee, printed perfectly and gargantuan parallel to the entrance of the gallery. Online images do it absolutely no justice, its physical presence is awe-inspiring. Beside this gruesome scene of a sucessful hunt lies a Birch tree with a name and a year carved on it, reminiscent of the childhood obsession with making your mark on school desks as well as the adolescent romantic act of inscribing names on a tree. Those words are oddly juxtaposed by a hunting knife sticking rod-straight out of another tree and the scene of carnage enveloping it. The textures of the flesh are beautifully mirrored by the peeling Birch bark. It all is presented so close to the viewer, especially through such a large print, that it's completely real and tangible. Lining another wall McPhee has three more prints of landscapes, all equally as beautiful.
Zoe Strauss, who I had the pleasure of meeting and speaking with that night, has an impactful contribution to the walls as well. Her site-specific installation shows the down and dirty lifestyle of the Philadelphia inner-city. Her images are hard to stomach most of the time, I have a hard time being settled while exploring them. My only beef with the presentation of her images were the TACKS. Yes, tacks. Those silver, academic billboard stamps we've all come to know so well. They were stabbed completely through the prints in all four corners to affix them to the wall. I was appalled. I suppose she tends to go about things in a pedestrian way much of the time, so it was fitting, but I was so distracted by those damn pushpins!
I'm so glad I was able to see Shane Lavalette's photographs in person! He was also at the exhibit, I was finally able to meet him, along with his girlfriend Allison Beondé, who sells handmade books as Black Pine Books. As you might remember I interviewed Shane last semester for Kevin's class, and I've kept in touch with him. He lives in Somerville, MA, which is pretty close to where I spend most of my time here. He's a wonderful photographer and I hope to see him around more while I'm in Boston. His photographs looked fabulous, and included my favorite image of his (the first featured in the interview I linked to).
Alec Soth's four images his representative gallery presented to the show were ones we've seen before, from his series Sleeping With the Mississippi. I found myself noticing new details within their boundaries, the more I looked. It made me really think about how differently we experience a photograph outside of the internet, in person. I wish I could see everything in person, honestly. I have a better appreciation of it when I do.
Coming into the show I wasn't particularly familiar with either Daniel Cheek or Ben Huff's photographs, but I'm definitely interested in them now. Especially Ben Huff and his photographic series The Last Road North, about Dalton Highway in Alaska. I definitely recommend checking them out on his website. I appreciated Daniel Cheek's images but I felt the display wasn't fitting. They were all probably around 8X10 prints, matted in white and framed in a constricting grid pattern. Many of the images are darker and since they are printed so small they lose much of their ability for impact. I found myself sticking my nose into them to understand them better. They're much more interesting on his website, even.
Overall it was an ambitious show and I applaud it. A diverse and strong group of photographers and
Zoe Strauss, who I had the pleasure of meeting and speaking with that night, has an impactful contribution to the walls as well. Her site-specific installation shows the down and dirty lifestyle of the Philadelphia inner-city. Her images are hard to stomach most of the time, I have a hard time being settled while exploring them. My only beef with the presentation of her images were the TACKS. Yes, tacks. Those silver, academic billboard stamps we've all come to know so well. They were stabbed completely through the prints in all four corners to affix them to the wall. I was appalled. I suppose she tends to go about things in a pedestrian way much of the time, so it was fitting, but I was so distracted by those damn pushpins!
I'm so glad I was able to see Shane Lavalette's photographs in person! He was also at the exhibit, I was finally able to meet him, along with his girlfriend Allison Beondé, who sells handmade books as Black Pine Books. As you might remember I interviewed Shane last semester for Kevin's class, and I've kept in touch with him. He lives in Somerville, MA, which is pretty close to where I spend most of my time here. He's a wonderful photographer and I hope to see him around more while I'm in Boston. His photographs looked fabulous, and included my favorite image of his (the first featured in the interview I linked to).
Alec Soth's four images his representative gallery presented to the show were ones we've seen before, from his series Sleeping With the Mississippi. I found myself noticing new details within their boundaries, the more I looked. It made me really think about how differently we experience a photograph outside of the internet, in person. I wish I could see everything in person, honestly. I have a better appreciation of it when I do.
Coming into the show I wasn't particularly familiar with either Daniel Cheek or Ben Huff's photographs, but I'm definitely interested in them now. Especially Ben Huff and his photographic series The Last Road North, about Dalton Highway in Alaska. I definitely recommend checking them out on his website. I appreciated Daniel Cheek's images but I felt the display wasn't fitting. They were all probably around 8X10 prints, matted in white and framed in a constricting grid pattern. Many of the images are darker and since they are printed so small they lose much of their ability for impact. I found myself sticking my nose into them to understand them better. They're much more interesting on his website, even.
Overall it was an ambitious show and I applaud it. A diverse and strong group of photographers and
Ben Huff
Alec Soth (+ Little Brown Mushroom if you haven't seen it already)
Shane Lavalette
Zoe Strauss
Daniel Cheek
Laura McPhee
Rose
I am jealous and proud you went there! Where is the show moving next?
ReplyDeleteHonestly I have no idea. I'm not sure if it's a touring show or not, I tried to look it up but didn't find any information. Maybe closer to it's end date at Montserrat there'll be some information on it?
ReplyDelete