Organized by Aperture Foundation, NY, NY
July 14 through September 16, 2012
This exhibition presents photographs and photo-based installations, many exhibited for the first time, that explore the territory of “undisclosed” or abstract imagery in all its forms. These investigations range from artifacts of recording the action of light without the benefit or limitation of a camera lens (as seen in the work of Ellen Carey, Michael Flomen and Ilan Wolff), to direct photographs of surfaces that generate pattern and optical uncertainty (Roland Fischer), to images that comment on our culture of images (Penelope Umbrico and Carel Balth). In some works, documentary references are all but expunged, creating a new class of aesthetic objects. Others test the limits of the familiar. All of these works involve a profound questioning of what role photographs play in contemporary visual culture.
The organization of the exhibition highlights the investigative nature of contemporary photography. An introductory section, Propositions, introduces viewers to a range of techniques, visual effects, and critical positions. The core of the exhibition is a series of single-artist installations that display the stunning range of these photographers' insights. They free the photograph from its familiar social and temporal references, aiding in the discovery of new possibilities of metaphoric suggestiveness, psychological engagement, and optical possibility.
The exhibition consists of 20 single images and 7 installations. There are also 2 videos and 1 audio. The exhibition includes work by 20 artists. Participating artists are: Bill Armstrong, Carel Balth, Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin, Ellen Carey, Roland Fischer, Michael Flomen, Manuel Geerinck, Shirine Gill, Barbara Kasten, Seth Lambert, Charles Lindsay, Chris McCaw, Edward Mapplethorpe, Roger Newton, Jack Sal, Penelope Umbrico, Randy West, Silvio Wolf, and Ilan Wolff
Organized by Experience Music Project, Seattle, WA
July 14 through September 16, 2012
Certain occurrences have rocked the world. Elvis Presley’s recording of “Hound Dog.” The rise of Beatlemania. Bob Dylan going electric. These events are so ingrained in our cultural history, it would be difficult to imagine the world without them. Artist to Icon presents approximately 49 black and white photographs, never before shown together, from the Experience Music Project collection, showcasing works by photographers who documented Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan and The Beatles at crucial times in their careers—well before anyone knew they would become legends.
These photographers were clearly in the right places at the right times. They captured specific moments when individual talent, style, good luck and social energies came together as harbingers of fame, fortune and immense cultural change. Through the images of these rock ‘n’ roll giants, we gain a sense of prehistory, of milling through backrooms and small clubs in the moments before artist became icon and the world of music changed forever.