Scenes from the blackout
Stan Douglas
David Zwirner gallery located at 525 W 19th St. Manhattan, exhibits 10 pieces of Stan Douglas photographs which entitled Scenes from the Blackout. They are scenes of New York City around the 1980s include landscape and street scenes. Some of the subject matter in the photographs are people but the majority of the images didn’t show people’s face. Most of the lighting in those photographs are pretty dark only added a dim light. As if the light was thrown out from a candle or a flashlight which matches the title of this show Scenes from the Blackout. The angle of view in Douglas photos are pretty interesting which include bird’s eye view and low angle shot. All of the scenes captured naturally but these are all set up scenes. Douglas has planned and created them which intended to evoke people the blackout events in New York City back to 70s and the disaster happened in recent years. The dim lighting style of all the photographs makes Scenes from the Blackout a series of images.
A Lifetime of Wandering
Arlene Gottfried
Arlene Gottfried’s a series of photographs A Lifetime of Wandering is exhibiting at Daniel Clooney’s gallery which located at 526 W. 26th St. of Manhattan. In the gallery, there are eight walls of street photography from the 80s of New York City. The main subject matter in these images is people. These scenes in the photo are very familiar to us because we see them every day only people dressed differently and some decorations and commercial posters on the wall are different than today. Some people might even live in the neighborhood of the scenes. Most of the angle of view in this series are eye-level and the subject matter has almost filled the frame. Also, Gottfried used the natural light to capture the moment. I think Gottfried was trying to capture the happy moment of people in his neighborhood where was a culturally diverse area. People were enjoying their leisure time which doesn’t seem to match the title A Lifetime of Wandering. However, Gottfried captured scenes which were attracted her and something meaningful to her. Gottfried like using the shapes of shadow to light his subject matter which makes this a coherent group of photographs.
Deana Lawson
At the gallery, Sikkema Jenkins is the first time Deana Lawson is having a solo show with the gallery. It is exhibiting ten photographs of African-American portraits. The intimacy and the settings feel like people in the scenes are families and space are their own house. However, it was set up scenes and people who take the picture with are all strangers they didn’t know each other. Lawson placed her subject matter mostly in the center of the eye-level angle. I think Lawson also used an external flash to capture the scenes because it was indoor shoots and the room was pretty dark. Lawson was intended to show the intense relationship between the strangers but captured them in an intimate way which draws viewer’s eye. The lighting style and the indoor setting make them a series of photographs.
The Stan Douglas exhibit Scenes from a Blackout do hang together because of their dark tonality as you state. “As if” from a candle-yes, lighting was used. They were shot in 2017.
The Arlene Gottfried photos look familiar to me as I was alive and in New York during the 1980s. I am interested that they seem familiar to you as well. I agree that she was trying to capture happy moments or ordinary moments-not catastrophe and misery. the title refers to the photographer. She wandered the streets for a lifetime, taking photos.