Gallery Interior 
Image City Photography Gallery
Newsletter
Issue: # 66April 26, 2013

We publish our brief Newsletter during each of our exhibits to pass along information and reviews of the exhibit, photographic tips, selected images and news of other participation opportunities at Image City. We thank you for your interest and we look forward to another great year of fine photographs and events. We hope to see you at each of our 13 shows in 2013. 

In This Issue
Our Current Show: Worlds Apart: Ethiopia and Elsewhere
Peter Marr Picks from the Exhibit
Additional Gallery Picks from the exhibit
Awards for Dick Bennett
Photographers' Alert: Competition and Courses -- Spring Session
Image City Critiques -- Wednesday, May 1st at 7pm
Calendar of Upcoming Events at Image City

Worlds Apart: Ethiopia and Elsewhere by Jim Patton and David Perlman

Current Show Runs Through Sunday, May 12

 

Join Us!! May 3rd is First Friday Gallery Night  

 

Patton-Perlman Showcard-240The current exhibit is Worlds Apart: Ethiopia and Elsewhere,  by the Gallery's Artists-in-Residence, Jim Patton and David Perlman. Jim's facinating study of the people of Ethiopia is from a recent trip. He describes his photographic vision -- "I started my travel photography with landscapes and monuments. But when I got home, it was always the pictures of people that meant the most -- that really captured the spirit of the place. The most fun is getting people involved with making the picture, wanting to be in a shot, enjoying the experience." David Perlman is deeply involved in the Rochester arts, music, theater and as a photographer he describes his work "on occasion, I emerge as an artist specializing in computer manipulations of my digital photographs."
  
In our East Gallery, Julie Oldfield is a guest photographer with her series of photographs featuring Rochester city scenes. Additional Guest Photographers are Augustine Masotti, Daniel Silver, and Steve TryonThe Camera Rochester exhibit has competition-winning photographs by Earl Jackson, Jerome Kaye, Susan Kaye, Sheila Mumpton, Sheila Nelson, and Bill Shannon
  
We round out the show with Gallery Partners Dick Bennett, Carl Crumley, Steve Levinson, Gil Maker, Don Menges, Jim Patton, David Perlman, Dan Neuberger, Betsy Phillips, Gary Thompson, Phyllis Thompson, and Sheridan Vincent.
  
Click here for a link to the details and a preview of images in the show. The exhibit runs through Sunday, May 12. There is no admission fee at Image City and the Gallery is accessible to all.
 Peter Marr's Picks from the Exhibit

 

Study in Pink and Blue by Jim PattonPeter Marr picked four photographs by the featured photographers in the exhibit for his Peter's Picks of the Show. We include a portion of his commentary on his selections. You can also find the full discussions and larger images by clicking here.

  

For the first selection of a Jim Patton photograph, Peter noted, "The many portraits, mostly set against vibrant colorful backgrounds, are incredible character studies of warm loving people, who are justly proud of their heritage and ethnic lineage. I was particularly impressed with the Study in Pink and Blue, and Agular, but being forced to comment on only one print, I chose the former. Here, this expressive photograph highlights an imposing young man, who is not just proud of his legacy and pedigree, but he is equally pleased with himself, especially of his good looks, striking physique and of his splendid attire. His headdress is carefully and distinctively knotted at the front, the peak following his intense stare, whilst his almost western style shirt is deliberately unbuttoned to proudly reveal the striking strands of highly colorful beads, that both reinforce his elegant facial features and his masculinity. The strong cheekbones underlie his steely gaze, which is not fixed on anything in particular, but a hallmark of his stature......more."Painter Plus by David Perlman

  

Peter chose David Perlman's combination of Albright Knox Gallery, Enhanced with a Rose and Trusted Painter, commenting "The eye-catching display of the two titled pieces above, superbly illustrates David's outstanding creativity in this exhibition of his unique photographs and assemblages. As Elliott Erwitt so eloquently stated, 'Photography has little to do with the things you see, and everything to do with the way you see them.' Artists like David see more, because they are looking for more, always exploring the cutting edge of thought, technology and artistic skills. He has left the viewer a clue to his artistry in the way his name, "bio," and two images are displayed ......more."

 

Grinding Corn and Teff by Jim Patton In another of Jim's photos from Ethiopia titled, Grinding Corn and Teff, Peter observed "This awesome exhibition, that delightfully captures both impressive and uplifting moments in the lives of some of the citizens of Ethiopia, is a great tribute to these people, and to the outstanding photographic talents of Jim Patton. Long known for his creative and profound understanding of ethno-cultures in far distant lands, it is very apparent why his "bio" states that his passion is for people, and I would personally add that in all of his images, there is an exhilaration, vitality and vibrancy that is unsurpassed. In a country where agriculture is of major and especial importance, the dynamic image of grinding and bagging cereals beautifully illustrates community fellowship, where family members all work diligently together, to ensure that every precious grain is ground and bagged successfully. Like the colors in all of Jim's exquisite prints, the joyously varied saturated hues of the women's apparel create a brilliant color palette that is enhanced in richness by the neutral hues of the background walls.......more."

 

Confusion by David PerlmanThe fourth of Peter's selections is Confusion -- "In David's thought-provoking print, an observer is depicted in an Art Gallery, in direct line of sight with the left vertical frame of a large modern work of art. If one could question this person, a possible response might be. 'I'm not looking for anything, I'm just looking.' This viewer dilemma is all too common in Art Galleries and Museums, especially when there are no docents available to assist uninformed visitors. A large percentage of even devout art-lovers will gravitate to pieces that they are familiar with, enjoy, or are just fascinated by, walking quickly by works that they either dislike, or don't want to take the time to explore. To the viewer contemplating the frame, it is very important to point out that this is one very ordinary fixture, one that would not merit prolonged attention. One is reminded of a quotation from Jeff Berner namely, 'Looking is a gift, but seeing is a power.' The framed artwork depicted in Confusion, is a large colorful abstract piece that certainly deserves some attention, rather than fixating on the frame itself. David has poignantly captured an especial dilemma, to see or not to see, that is the question. When you go inside the gallery to enjoy this fabulous show, please take the time to explore every image to its fullest, and not be like the viewer who cannot see beyond the frame."

Additional Gallery Picks

 

In addition to Peter's Picks, we have made four additional selections from the exhibit.

 

El Fuerte by Augustine MasottiEl Fuerte by Augustine Masotti -- at left -- Wrapped canvas images give a painter-like feeling to Augustine's images. El Fuerte's strong graphic composition controls the eyes of the viewer, moving up the stairs and out the door to the bright sunlight. This contrasts with the muted pastels of the interior walls. The stairs provide the classic "s-curve" that is most often seen with  streams and paths. Even the tree on the right is moving out of the room into the light.

 

Framed by Julie OldfieldFramed by Julie Oldfield -- at right -- Julie explores the medium of aluminum metal prints with a strong selection of both black-and-white and color photographs in the East Gallery. Although the photographs are presented as ungraded images this photograph actually relays on the clever composition to in fact provide three to four frames on an image of a single tree in the snow. These photographic frames effectively move the eye to where the photographer wants it to go, the line tree. It provides a strong separation from the viewer, almost like looking through a tunnel. Using black-and-white strips the image of colors which might prove to be distracting to the effect of this photograph. This allows the beauty of the aluminum substrate to literally shine through.

 

 

Cape Cod RunnerCape Cod Runner by Daniel Silver -- at left -- A lone figure running in the surf is made so much more dramatic by the counterpoint of the combination of sun and its reflection on the water. The runner is in silhouette, allowing the viewer to focus on his movement. The exhilaration of the simple act of running along the surf is displayed by the strong composition. Orange colors contrast to the subtle colors of the surf. 
  
Morning Light by Steve Tryon 
Morning Light -- by Steve Tryon --at right -- Capturing light is the essence of photography as well as paintings. Rembrandt is one of the prime examples of the capture of light. Morning Light is in this same theme, showing the beauty of light streaming through the window, subtlety lighting the table and chairs. The combination of square format and black-and-white photography add to the composition. There is just enough illumination on the right hand portion of the picture to allow the eye to explore all of the corners on this picture.
  
Image City Partner Dick Bennett Receives Awards

Congratulations Dick! 

 

Dick Bennett and 11 other people from across the United States traveled to Burma (Myanmar) last December in a humanitarian mission and a photographic tour. Tour organizer Chris Kogut, who has been a guest photographer at the Gallery, connected the group with the Parami Foundation. This Burmese non-profit Foundation runs four schools for the poor near Yangon. The group of photographers delivered over 700 pieces of clothing for the use of the students.

 

Burma is a beautiful though very poor country with many opportunities to grab marvelous images. Dick submitted four of his images from the trip to a regional photo competition conducted by the Professional Photographers of America (PPA), of which he is a member. Nearly 1,000 images were submitted to the panel of six judges who based their decision on twelve criteria. Dick was the only photographer in the competition to receive a perfect score of 100 from each of the six judges. He traveled to Tarrytown in early April for a joint convention of the New York and New Jersey affiliates of PPA to receive his awards. Dick was particularly proud because perfect scores are rarely given in this competition.

 

For his image Serenity, Dick won a Judges Award, a $100.00 gift certificate from LexJet, a plaque for the Best in NY State and one for a perfect score. He also won a pin signifying that the four images he submitted had an average score over 80.

 

Image City will feature Dick and four other photographers who joined the Burma tour in a show that will open on October 2, 2013.

 

  
Photographers' Alert: Upcoming Competition and New Courses at Image City
Be on the lookout in coming days for the "Call for Submissions" for the upcoming Portfolio Showcase 2013, a juried exhibit where the judges will choose eight photographer's portfolios of eight photographs for the exhibit in August.
  
Several of the Spring Gallery Courses are underway. There is no mail-in or online registration. Please visit the Gallery to sign up for courses. There are openings remaining in the following courses -- Click here to learn the details.
 
On Composition (Session I) with Bruno Chalifour
On Composition (Session II) with Bruno Chalifour
One-on-One Coaching with Gallery Partners

Image City Critiques

At Image City on Wednesday, May 1st at 7pm

 

Each month, we enjoy a good turnout for Image City Critiques, our program at Image City to provide participants an opportunity to engage in a friendly, constructive, and positive critique and review of their photographs. The sessions are held on the first Wednesday of the month. The assignment for the May 1st is to provide three images considering "perspective". All images must be taken with the camera less than 4 feet from the ground. We have inaugurated the Image City Critiques Flickr Group. It's a private group on Flickr, so you have to be invited to join. Contact Don Menges for more information.

 

Calendar of Events
Image City Photography Gallery, 722 University Avenue 

 

May 1 Gallery Critiques Meeting 7pm
May 3 First Friday Gallery Night 5 - 9 pm

May 12 Final Day for Worlds Apart: Ethiopia and Elsewhere
May 15 Opening Day of exhibit by Dan Neuberger as the featured artist
 
Image City Photography Gallery   Hours: Wednesday - Saturday 11 - 7, Sunday Noon - 4  
 

There is no admission fee to visit Image City Photography Gallery

Contact Information

 Image City Photography Gallery, 722 University Avenue, Rochester, NY 14607

585.271.2540 
website: www.ImageCityPhotographyGallery.com 

 

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