Richard Avedon, Monroe Gallery (Group Show), Oli Kellett
Marian Anderson Contrailto June 30 1955, Photograph by Richard Avedon, courtesy of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.
National Museum of American History | (re) Framing Conversations: Photographs by Richard Avedon 1946-1965, November 22, 2023 – November 1, 2024
“The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History will open a second complete rotation of 20 extraordinary Richard Avedon portraits spanning two decades and curated from the museum’s extensive photo history collection. The new iteration of the “(re)Framing Conversations: Photographs by Richard Avedon, 1946– 1965” exhibition will launch Wednesday, Nov. 22, and is scheduled to run through 2024.
“In November 1962, the National Museum of American History hosted Avedon’s very first one-man exhibition that included a range of photographic materials, including photographs, proof prints, contact sheets, a printing plate and more. Avedon gifted the whole of that show to the museum followed shortly by two additional donations of his work including photographs and negatives. It is from those gifts that “(re)Framing
Conversations: Photographs by Richard Avedon 1946–1965” are drawn.
“Presented in conjunction with Avedon’s Centennial year, the exhibit offers both beauty and stark realism from a time when photographic film dominated. Internationally recognized as one of the 20th century’s most influential photographers, Avedon's photography captured depth and dimension, embracing the emotions, psychology and aging of his subjects. Though high fashion brought him his initial fame, his passion for social and political issues became evident as his popularity rose.
“The exhibition’s themes of politics, personal decision making, and identity are explored in six sections with questions around music, marriage, women and politics, who decides what’s sexy, can we change our minds, and who do you stand with. Included in the exhibit is a living room with a rotation of magazines from the 1940s through the 1960s for visitors to peruse, as well as interactive tabletops about portraiture, encouraging visitors to sit, pause, reflect and engage. Visitors can use their phone to access visual descriptions with QR codes located throughout the exhibition.
““As a history museum holding a vast and exceptional collection of photography, we are pleased to reveal how fine art provides a key lens to understand and explore the nation’s complicated history,” said Anthea M. Hartig, the museum’s Elizabeth MacMillan Director. “The visual impact of Avedon’s photographs capture some of the cultural and social tensions of the era through the mass media platform of magazines which he used masterfully as one of the nation’s culturemakers.”
““Photographs embody social, cultural, and political messages that we quickly absorb, whether we know it or not,” said Shannon Perich, curator of the photographic history collection. “Revisiting these historical photographs we can contemplate people of the past whose actions continue to resonate today, and point to our contemporary ability to continue to impact American culture by what music we listen to, how we engage with issues that matter to us, and who we vote for. Avedon’s portraits humanize people that have been elevated through history reminding us that we are all people who have power. We just have to decide how we are going to employ it.”
“The last opportunity to see the initial rotation of 20 portraits featured in “(re) Framing Conversations” which includes portraits of Charlie Chaplin, Malcolm X, Judy Garland and others, will be Nov. 5.
For more information visit National Museum of American History
Stephen Wilkes, Hurricane Sandy, Seaside Heights, New Jersey, 2012
Monroe Gallery of Photography | Group Show: This Fragile Earth, November 24, 2023 – January 22, 2024
“This Fragile Earth opens with a public reception from 5-7 pm on Friday, November 24, and will continue through January 21, 2024..
“As a warming Earth simmered into worrisome new territory this year, the exhibit features a wide range of photographs documenting the grandeur of nature and majestic landscapes alongside images illustrating devastation caused by environmental neglect and the effects of a changing climate across our fragile Earth.
“Dying coral reefs, exceptionally warm ocean temperatures, searing record temperatures, prolonged drought and more intense Nor’easters, Antarctic Sea ice shrinking to record levels, out of control and devastating wildfires and wildfire smoke are among the many signals of climate distress. Our world is changing faster – and in more ways – than we could have ever imagined. With social and economic disruption on a scale rarely seen since the end of World War II, changes across our ecosystems are forcing us to completely rethink the notion of ‘business as usual’.
“Just as photographs illustrating the transformative experiences of nature have been instrumental in promoting the cause of environmental conservation, photographs from recent climate events can raise awareness about global warming, channeling it into hope and into collective action. Using photography, the exhibit informs in the hope the images motivate awareness and change.”
For more information visit Monroe Gallery
Oli Kellett, Cross Road Blues (Grand Ave Chicago), 2017
HackelBury | Waiting for a Sign, November 24, 2023 – March 2, 2024
“Waiting for a Sign focuses on Kellett’s iconic Crossroad Blues series of large-scale portraits of people waiting at crossroads in urban cities across the globe from London to Mexico City and numerous across North America. The series began in 2016 when Kellett was visiting Los Angeles during the lead-up to the 2016 presidential election and the country was at a political crossroads. It continued to evolve over the following four years as a result of Kellett’s numerous visits to countries including Spain, Japan, Mexico, Brazil and Colombia.
“In these times of seismic geo-political shifts and significant global events, the series has now taken on a universal significance. It captures still moments of contemplation in which individuals question the direction they take and the life they make. Inspired by the title of Gauguin ́s painting “Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?” in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, this series reflects our existential search for an answer.
“As the writer and philosopher Nigel Warburton writes in his introductory essay for the accompanying book ‘Crossroad Blues’ published by Nazraeli Press; “The step each person is about to take seems far more momentous than simply crossing a street”. As Oli Kellett explains: “I ́m looking for a moment when somebody is psychologically removed from the physical space they are in, alone with their thoughts for a few seconds.”
“The large-scale photographs in ‘Crossroad Blues’ series contrast the anonymity of urban space with the individuality of human experience. The scale of these photographs captures tangible human expression and allows the viewer to recognise a moment of conscious contemplation in their lives.
“Kellett’s commitment to find the perfect light saw him walking the streets of cities for days before setting up his large format architectural camera and waiting to capture these private moments. The way the buildings frame his subjects and his focus on the light and composition creates a cinematic quality, providing a dramatic architectural backdrop to these unstaged scenes which reveal the artist’s deep interest in the human psyche. Kellett’s interest in art history began at art college, when he took up street painting to recreate Renaissance masterpieces. His last composition in the ‘Crossroad Blues’ series in 2019 on Avenida Almirante Barroso in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil shows two people looking skywards, one of them with the gesture of the finger pointing up to the sky. Reminiscent of Raphael’s ‘School of Athens’ painting, posing questions of spirituality and immortality, this was to be Kellett’s last work in the series. For him it felt like a sign and a natural stepping stone to explore more metaphysical ideas in his work.”
For more information visit HackelBury
