Young Curators, New Ideas II

Untitled, Potash Mine, distant view
Wendover, UT
2004
copyright Victoria Sambunaris

I've discovered a lot of great work by women photographers on Women in Photography's site - recently, some very strange and quirky or unsettling interiors devoid of people shot by Lynne Cohen. One of my favorite series on WIP consists of American landscapes made by photographer, Victoria Sambunaris. I've never met Victoria, but I have a romantic notion of an amazing woman traveling the highways and backroads of this country with a dog and a large format camera. She is one of my living photo idols, and I am excited to see her print tonight in Young Curators, New ideas II at P.P.O.W. Gallery in Chelsea.

This exhibition examines new voices in contemporary art through the perspective of seven New York-based curatorial teams including good friends Amani Olu of Amani Olu Projects and Cara Phillips and Amy Elkins of WIP.

Young Curators, New Ideas II

P.P.O.W.
511 West 25th Street
Room 301

opening reception Thursday August 6th, 6-8pm

culturehall at Foundation NY

Art fair action kicks off today, and my head is spinning a little from sorting out where to go and what to see, but here are a few stops at the top of my list:

David Andrew Frey, founder of culturehall, a new curated site for contemporary art, can be found at Fountain NY at Pier 66. I have recently taken on the position of Assistant Curator for culturehall and look forward to inviting new artists in the upcoming months.

Amani Olu Projects will be exhibiting work by a group of artists at the Scope Art Fair including Michael Buhler-Rose, Gerald Edwards III, Jon Feinstein, Alison Malone, Marc McAndrews, Bradley Peters, Peter Riesett, David La Spina, Tina Tyrell and Ann Woo. I got to see Amani participate in a panel discussion last night facilitated by the Camera Club of New York that created a lively dialogue about collecting photography amongst gallerists, Daniel Cooney and Michael Mazzeo, as well as photographer and curator, Cara Phillips, from WIP and two prominent photo collectors.

Photographer, Jason Lazarus, a former student and old friend from Chicago whom I haven't seen in person in nearly a decade, will be presenting a solo exhibition of his work thru Andrew Rafacz Gallery at VOLTA NY.

And the previously mentioned Juliana Beasley will be exhibiting work from her Eyes of Salamanca series thru Group Station Independant Projects at the Bridge Art Fair.

All events thru March 8th, 2009.

Revisiting America

Untitled
from Boonville project
copyright Timothy Briner


Joanna
from Boonville project
copyright Timothy Briner

This Wednesday, an exciting and timely show opens at the Bond Street Gallery curated by the gallery's new director, Amani Olu. In light of our current political and economic climate, Revisiting America aptly draws from work by a number of talented American photographers who have examined relevant themes of consumerism, corporate development, technology, manufactured landscapes and what remains of small town America.

One of the photographers whose work is included in the show is both my friend and current teaching assistant at the ICP, Timothy Briner. I have been avidly following Tim's Boonville blog since he set off last summer to explore small towns called Boonville across the country for nearly a year. Part of what makes Tim's blog so compelling is the combination of his passion and sincerity, as well as his ability to share the internal and emotional process of making a body of work. Five prints from his Boonville project will be exhibited for the first time on Wednesday, and I am excited to see some of the fantastic results of his labor.

The opening of Revisiting America falls on the night of the final debate between McCain and Obama, so I plan to get there early to begin a long night of absorbing the complex and unsettling state of American life. I noticed in the last debate that Barack Obama quoted George Bush after 9/11 encouraging Americans to shop, a sinister statement also noted by another participating photographer, Brian Ulrich, when he talks about the motivations behind his series, Copia/Retail, which depicts zombie-like shoppers in big-box stores.

Other participating artists in the show include Jon Feinstein, Justin James Reed, Mathhew Gambler, Angie Smith and Michael Vahrenwald.

Revisiting America
Opening Reception: Wednesday, October 15th, 6-9pm

Bond Street Gallery
297 Bond Street
Brooklyn, NY