Presented in this show are a series of original plates from early Camera Work magazines. Camera Work was a publication of photography headed by Alfred Stieglitz from 1903 to 1917 which represented the Photo-Secessionists. These photographers and artists took a modernist view of art and the world, always seeking, “to help the modern tendencies to come to the front, to show the public what was being done, and not what had been done; to make people look, not to the past, but to the future” (Paul Haviland, January 1909 CameraWork). 

  The world would see great changes during this time period through industrialization, urban sprawl, technological progress and eventually devastating war. Modernism was the artist's way of reacting to these changes, rejecting the ideas of classical and realistic art to focus on Surrealism, Impressionism, or Pictorialism. These portraits, even though created with a camera, do not focus on the act of representation through pure likeness. Instead they aim to , “reveal(s) a definite state of sensibility. To invent a portrait is to conse­crate the liberation of a living and thinking being to isolate, not man, but one man, to realize all the distinctive features of his physiognomy, discern and register them; it is in fact an act of freedom.” (Waldemar George).

  In our current time we face our own great changes - the AI boom, data economy, and the digitization of every aspect of our lives. This show is a way of remembering that through these great changes we can react in our own way. We can create objects, art and ideas that help us move forward while discerning what is the true soul of what we seek. For just as these plates were created to be, “an object of great beauty and superb quality” we too can create our own objects of beauty and quality. 

  We are pleased to present a unique experience during the opening reception in collaboration with Bruce Robert Wahl. Bruce will be making tintype portraits and developing them on site throughout the day. Tintypes, one of the earliest forms of photography, are made by exposing an image onto a thin sheet of metal, coated with a photosensitive emulsion. The resulting piece is a rich and remarkably detailed image that you can take home with you the same day. Check out  our framed tintypes on display and feel free to inquire with staff for a custom quote.  See his work here.