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This exhibit is supported, in part by a
grant from the Fall River Cultural Council, a local agency supported by the
Massachusetts Cultural Council.
Exhibit Statement
In an area such as this,
replete with change, history and visual interest- one would need years to
thoroughly explore and record that change and reach the true depth of the
street's character. I tried to do it in one. Chalk it up to youthful ambition.
I am sure I have missed many things.
My goal
in this project was to take a closer look at what South Main Street is and what
defines it. The exhibit highlights some obvious gems, as well as those nooks
and crannies that are often overlooked or have gone completely unnoticed. For
the most part, architecture is the focus (as it is the immediate face of South
Main), however there are some interiors and inevitably, human presence.
For this project I recruited a
photographer -Denn Santoro- who shares a similar approach to viewing our
environment. The figurative and literal lens through which we explore this
environment and chose our imagery is multi-faceted. The first is that of being
outsiders. Having not been born in this area, we have a relatively removed view
of the city. This gave us a slight objective advantage so that our
representation of the city could remain in the realm of visual interest instead
of becoming -what easily could have been- a social commentary of what the
street was, is, and what it could be.
The
second is that of two artists whose work focuses on finding that unseen angle
of an object, person or place. Our work in this exhibit looks at South Main
Street front-ways, sideways, upsidedown and askew. Many images in the show may
go unrecognized at first, however spend a little time with a piece and the
familiar will emerge.
The
other facets have to do with the media in which South Main Street is
represented in this exhibit. The color photography of Denn Santoro is a direct
representation of South Main, straight from the literal lens of his camera.
Though he uses a digital instrument, all creative work is done in the view
finder; no digital manipulation and little cropping follow once the shot is
taken. My perspective is seen through a series of black and white paintings. I
often rework the images with a touch of "artistic license" to create a
stronger, more concise image and to present what I see as the visual essence of
the subject.
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