VoxPhotographs Weblog

While visiting with Tony Descanes, Owner, and Shannon McDonald, Gallery Manager, of Panopticon Gallery in Boston, the Photographic Resource Center came up.

From its mission statement: “The PRC at Boston University is an independent non-profit organization that serves as a vital forum for the exploration and interpretation of new work, ideas, and methods in photography and related media.”

It’s a cool and friendly place. We saw a truly great show there curated by PRC Curator Leslie K. Brown -“Keeping Time: Cycle and Durations in Contemporary Photography” – really unique approaches to image-making for a change. I was able to see part of  Byron Wolfe’s project of attempting to take a compelling photo every day between his 35th and 36th birthdays. The project was published in 2007 by Chronicle Books and called “Everyday: A Yearlong Photo Diary.” You’d think this would be just a self-serving kind of “what do I do next” project, but it is, in fact, extraordinary and for me a real gift from the artist. Each image becomes an entire story in itself and the work is just as much about taking truly excellent photographs as recording everyday life and making whatever point the artist cares to make.

If I had an opportunity to see the entire body of work, I’d pack a lunch and do so. But, lacking that, I’ll buy the book.

Wolfe also collaborated with Mark Klett (and Rebecca Solnit) – who I wrote about earlier in this blog – on the book “Yosemite in Time”.

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Two other artists featured in the “Keeping Time” show are Sharon Harper and Matthew Pillsbury. Harper’s series represented here “Moon Studies and Star Scratches” is fascinating and worthy of plenty of quiet observation on the part of the viewer. She pulls together several exposures onto one single sheet of film and the images sampled in the show are amazing.

Moon Studies and Star Scratches, No.9 © Sharon Harper, courtesy of PRS/BU

Pillsbury uses long exposures to capture people experiencing media such as TV shows, computers, cell phones. The result is mesmerizing, totally unique work.

Image © Matthew Pillsbury

Here is an image titled “Cellphone on Venice Beach, Sunday, September 24, 2006, 6:58 – 7:09, etc”. So, it’s an eleven minute exposure – and an incredible shot of us all pacing about suspended in time talking, talking, talking. The image is courtesy of the artist and Bonni Benrubi Gallery, NYC.

Spend some time online studying more images and artists in the show – or go to PRC in Boston if you can and see the real thing. I could have spent twice as much time there as I was able – such a treat to see so many unique concepts for using the medium of photography.

This entry was posted on December 6, 2008 at 4:46 pm and is filed under EXHIBITS/SHOWS, New England . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.