Posts Tagged "Black & White"
DENISE TROTIER JOHNSON
(Photo credit: Denise Trotier Johnson, Flow)
(Photo credit: Denise Trotier Johnson, Balance)
(Photo credit: Denise Trotier Johnson, Portrait Within)
Photographer Denise Trotier Johnson finds a certain zen in the act of image making. Her photographs Flow, Balance and Portrait Within are currently featured in the Center’s Black and White exhibition.
Visit www.denisejohnsonphotography.com to see more of Johnson’s work
Read MoreDAVID SAXE
(Photo credit: David Saxe, Surfer, Highland Beach from the series Stolen Moments)
It’s possible that water becomes more elemental in black and white, the simultaneous reduction to textured light and shadow imbued with an ethereal quality. On film water exists contrary to the natural world – immutable, captive. Saxe’s image of a surfer beneath a beach side shower pauses on such a fleeting moment.
He abstracts:
Stolen Moments is the title of a jazz classic by Oliver Nelson which I used to listen to endlessly as a young man. It was my “comfort” piece and I would listen to it over and over again for hours —reclining on my couch, smoking a cigarette and dreaming of love lost and love found, my future, and place in the world. This was a special time in my life, and these photographs remind me of those days and those dreams.
See more of David’s work as well as a color version of Surfer at www.dsaxe.com
Read MoreMARKO SUSLA
(Photo credit: Marko Susla, We Were to Meet Here from the series Longing)
A public space so often brushed past in the chill of night, the vacant bench in Marko Susla’s We Were to Meet Here has a story to tell. The busy romance of the distant city lights makes you wonder just how many sets of initials are carved into the wood.
See more of the Longing series here
Read MoreS. GAYLE STEVENS
(Photo credit: S. Gayle Stevens, Nest #3 Dark from the series Nest)
The digital age encourages us to forget that photography was born of fussy chemistry and precision timing. Can you imagine anyone with a smart phone and a laptop hauling a mule up a mountain a la William Henry Jackson? Photographer S. Gayle Stevens skips the animal assistants but has utilized antiquarian processes for over 15 years. Dubbed the “Alt Queen” by her students, Stevens has a particular romance with the temperamental wet collodion ambrotype process.
In her own words:
The small things which people overlook inspire me. Everyone has seen a bird’s nest before but I believe most overlook the structure and composition of the nest. The nests themselves are unique and are not returned to the following year. The sense of line, form, and the material used in construction are all fascinating to me. Some nests are woven like baskets, others constructed of mud, sticks, or moss. Sometimes I find only the framework of a nest, as in Nest #3 Dark Version. Fragile, the remaining structure is like a drawing; these structures inspire me.
On wet collodion:
Wet plate is very hands-on and I am a hands-on person. It is a slow and fast process. You flow the plate and sensitize, then you have about 10-15 minutes to get the exposure before the plate starts to dry, develop, fix, and wash. After it dries over an oil lamp, varnish it with gum sandarac and lavender oil, afterwards everything smells like lavender. The whole oil lamp process is kind of romantic. Happy accidents occur on the plates; mystery, a sense of chance, I like the flaws. Sometimes I think the flaws make the plate. It is like spirits are coming out and speaking through me. When I flow a plate, there is a dark placid pool that draws me in and takes over, I like that place.
Check out more of Stevens work at www.sgaylestevens.com
Read MoreSTAN RAUCHER
(Photo credit: Stan Raucher, Twins, Fulton Mall, Brooklyn)
Stan Raucher wears the suit of the obsessive observer quite well. He has distilled an extensive body of work from day to day encounters – on the street, in the subway, merely passing by. Raucher is captivated by the moments that fail to print (or qualify for Facebook update status) in our daily digests.
In his own words:
My candid photography documents ordinary people going about their daily lives in various countries and cultures. As individuals interact with one another and their surroundings, the poetry of the street emerges whenever situations that are unexpected, mysterious, humorous or poignant unfold. A spontaneous gesture, an unusual juxtaposition, a concealed mood or a hidden emotion may suddenly materialize and then vanish in a split-second. Such ephemeral events are often overlooked or quickly forgotten. My intent is to capture these fleeting moments as evocative, richly-layered photographs that will prompt us to pause and reflect on our modern lives.
Visit www.stanraucher.com to see more of Raucher’s work.
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