Artistic Tucson » Photography

“Masters Of American Photography” Opening at Etherton Gallery June 11

Charles Spillar — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 03:24:07 +0000

El Capitan, Sunrise,Winter, Yosemite National Park, CA 1968

Etherton Gallery presents its summer exhibition, Masters of American Photography (June 11, 2011 – August 27, 2011). The show opens with a reception Saturday, June 11, 2011, 7-10pm.

Chief Joseph-Nez Perces (c1879) by Frank A. Rinehart

The exhibition, which celebrates Etherton Gallery’s 30^th Anniversary, features a selection of photographs recently acquired from important private collections by the great practitioners of American photography: including Ansel Adams, Richard Misrach, Ruth Bernhard and Frank A. Rinehart, and works culled from the gallery’s extensive holdings.

Tyrannosaurus Rex and Impala (1984) by Richard Misrach

Galax, Virginia (1962) by Lee Friedlander

The exhibition articulates the breadth of Etherton Gallery’s distinctly classical American aesthetic with a few twists and turns, developed over the last 30 years. Highlights of the show include rare vintage prints from the Night Desert series (c. 1975-77) by Richard Misrach; El Capitan, Sunrise, Winter, Yosemite National Park, California (1968) by Ansel Adams; Ruth Bernhard’s sensuous nude, In the Box, Horizontal (1962); Joel Peter Witkin’s s beautiful portrait, La Giovanissima (2007); a vintage print of Helmut Newton’s In My Apartment, Paris (1978); and a rare image of Chief Joseph – Nez Perces (1879) by Frank A. Rinehart.

Chicago (1950) by Harry Callahan

Other highlights include works by Harry Callahan, Linda Connor, Lee Friedlander, Emmet Gowin, Mark Klett, Danny Lyon, Timothy O’Sullivan, Frederick Sommer, Garry Winogrand, and numerous others.

Untitled, Plate 22 from the Night Desert series (1977) by Richard Misrach

Etherton Gallery is located in SoCo (the recently designated cultural district South of Congress) at 135 South 6th Avenue in downtown Tucson, AZ 85701, above Janos Downtown Kitchen+Cocktails. Regular hours: Tues-Sat, 11am-5pm and by appointment. For more information, contact the gallery at (520) 624-7370 or info@ethertongallery.com

New Gallery Opening in Historic Arts Warehouse District Saturday December 4!

Charles Spillar — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 05:26:23 +0000

Smoking Man by Beth Hynes

On Saturday December 4, the new fine art gallery named Wanderlust Gallery will open its doors to the public. They are participating in the 1^st Saturday art walk and the gallery is located in the historic building on 6^th & 6^th. The exhibition featured is called The Nature of Man. A quote by Peter Landry about the show is: “Man is not of divine origins; nor is he headed that way, he is not perfect nor is he perfectible. He is what he is; by nature formed.”

Zero Grams Trans Fat by S. Jordan Palmer

This unique exhibition is a student exhibition from artists from University of Arizona, Pima College, and Northern Arizona University. Three students Jacob Biggerstaff, Carly O’Neill and Josh Schffer curated it. There are 18 artists in the presentation. The art students focused primarily on the darker side of human existence, exemplifying issues of struggle and suffering, violence and vices, addiction and aggression. This is the type of art that will make you think and reflect. All the art in my opinion is very professional and priced to sell.

They Spruce Themselves Up by Brandon Shimmel

Untitled by Mathew Trowbridge

No Wire Hangers by Devon Inglee

This very unique new gallery is just starting up and will be progressing in the near future with professional lighting and more variety. The gallery owners Alisa Rabinovich and Joseph Zapf-Kent are hoping to offer art of various styles and price ranges.

Alisa has a very interesting background. She is originally from Uzbekistan, formerly a part of the Soviet Union. She moved to the USA on a refugee program in 1990. She has studied art from a very early age and for the past four years prior to moving to Tucson was a fashion buyer and visual merchandiser. Her artistic ability makes her capable of working in all mediums and should be very successful as a gallery owner. Here education in the arts is international in studies and experience.

Her partner Joseph is a lifetime resident of Arizona and his parents have been artists making pottery for many years. <http://www.manapottery.com> Joseph, like Alisha, have been stricken what we travelers call the Wanderlust, hence the name of their gallery. He moved back to Tucson recently from Sedona where he worked for a jewelry company, Starborn Creations.

Both of the partners feel that “art is an adventure and should not be limited by the confines of labels and genres. Art is something to be shared and is a social medium and a pure form of communication. It should be accessible to all and believe people should be able to walk into a gallery without feeling intimidated or judged for their lack of knowledge.” They want their gallery to be inviting to all and realize it is still evolving. It will have portions resembling a boutique, a teaching space, a working space and a performance piece. It will be an enjoyable adventure for all art patrons to watch as it evolves.

Wanderlust is located at 439 N. 6th Ave. Its a few doors West of the corner of Sixth and Sixth. 439 W. 6th Ave. 520-207-3346.

Email: wanderlustfineart@gmail.com

HOURS for 12/4/2010 Opening: 6 pm to 9:00 pm.

Art Opening At Temple Gallery Friday 10/22 Featuring Works by Nikki Westra

Charles Spillar — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 15:47:10 +0000

Drama Queen by Nikki Westra

The works of , Nikki Westra: Collage, will be exhibited at an artist’s reception October 22 at the Temple Gallery. Her work features intricate collages using images appropriated from anatomical texts, published between the late 19^th and mid 20^th century.

The artist was inspired by meeting the renowned photographer Frederick Sommer. Westra cuts up beautifully colored anatomical drawings and then rearranges the delicately veined organs and tissue in new relationships to make her collages. She literally transforms the machinery of the human body reorganizing tissue and bone to make something new.

Valor by Nikki Westra

For example in Valor, Westra strategically juxtaposes unrelated parts of the body, bringing to life a fantastic new being that resembles a back-to-the-future Roman warrior. By moving pelvis, spinal cord and bony fingers to the surface, she constructs an exoskeleton helmet that protects the figure’s head and the green tracery beneath the skin. The accolades symbolized by the medal of valor, seem like meaningless praise to Westra’s inconsolable figure.

Game Face by Nikki Westra

This theme is also evident in Game Face, in which Westra reverses the position of tissue and bone to form a helmet, and here presents half a rib cage as a shield or perhaps a cape and transforms pieces of bone into an axe. Like Prometheus, who defied the laws of nature and created man, Westra’s transformation of the human body into new, unimagined beings, defies the laws of human anatomy. The effect is eerily beautiful and fascinating, drawing us in to look closely at the work and ultimately, at ourselves.

Nikki Westra returned to the practice of art after a distinguished legal career. Always an avid amateur photographer, early on she became interested in composition and balance. While living in Prescott, Arizona, during the 1990s, she made the acquaintance of photographer, Frederick Sommer whose philosophy of art and life had a profound influence on her work. Westra likes to think that Sommer, who also experimented with collage, would approve of the structure and source material of her collages.

Nikki Westra: Collages will be available for viewing and purchase until November 23, 2010. The Temple Gallery will host an artist reception on Friday, October 22, 5:30-7:30 pm.

LOCATION: The Temple Gallery is located in SoCo (South of Congress) at the Temple of Music and Art, 330 S. Scott Ave in downtown Tucson.

HOURS: Open Monday – Friday, 10am to 5pm and prior to Arizona Theatre Company performances on Saturday and Sunday.

For information about the exhibition, contact Etherton Gallery, which manages the Temple Gallery at (520) 624-7370 or info@ethertongallery.com. To confirm gallery hours, please call the Temple of Music and Art at (520) 807-8029.

Tucson Fire Foundation Honor Firefighters That Lost Their Lives on 9/11/2001 With Two Special Events

Charles Spillar — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 17:12:52 +0000

Photo by Sean Stuchen

On September 11, 2001, one of the worst acts of violence on American soil took place taking the lives of almost 3000 Americans. 343 of those that died that day were firefighters. On 9/11/2010 these heroic souls will be remembered in a ceremony created by the Tucson Fire Foundation, a new non-profit 501c3 corporation. Postcards will be available to the public to address a remembrance to the FDNY and will be sent by the foundation to New York.

The event will be held at the Art Gallery located north of Speedway on Stone Ave in an invitation only occasion. The incredible photographs of Tucson firefighters by local photographer Sean Stuchen will be exhibited and sold at both events with proceeds going to the foundation. Sean will be present for both days’ events. The special 9/11 happening will be a major fundraiser for the Tucson Fire Foundation created to help firefighters and their families for circumstances beyond the normal coverage provided. For more details visit their website: http://www.tucsonfirefoundation.org

Photo by Sean Stuchen

On Sunday, September 12, from 1-6 PM the public is invited to meet the photographer and view the unique photos of our own local heroes and their necessary equipment. Once you view Stuchen’s photographs you will never take for granted the sacrifices these men and women face daily and the dangers they often have to endure. Very seldom have I been so affected by photography like this. I will never take for granted the work these gallant people undertake on the public’s behalf. The photographs bring the firefighter’s real reality to us. The physical conditioning they must maintain and the extreme dangers they face become obvious in these photographs.

Sean Stuchen’s photography in this exhibition demonstrates his professionalism and his feel for composition and color. His works capture the heart and soul of his subjects as you will witness upon viewing this exhibition. His style pushes the envelope photographing subjects from unique angles that offer a view into another dimension. Other subjects he has captured are exhibited in a gallery space off from the main firefighter exhibit for the public to see. They show his range of professionalism on numerous subjects.

Photo by Sean Stuchen

The Saturday event will pay tribute to the brother and sister firefighters that lost their lives on 9/11 with special speakers and presentations. Entertainment that evening will feature what I consider an “angel singing.” 15-year-old singer/songwriter Alisha Peru will be singing the Star Spangled Banner and many touching songs appropriate for the event including some she wrote herself. The Cienega High School sophomore has been playing the piano since age 4 and reading music before she could even read words. In addition to being a singer/songwriter she plays alto & tenor saxophone and guitar. Recently Alisha was featured on KGUN 9’s “The Morning Blend” television show and her new songs can be found on ITunes or at her myspace page. You will be amazed at this young local talent.

Singer/Songwriter Alisha Peru

The Art Gallery location is 1122 N. Stone Ave. (just north of Speedway) Phone: 520-624-7099. Sunday’s 9/12 public event hours are 1PM – 6 PM. The exhibition opened September 1 and will be open until September 30 for public viewing and purchase. Weekly hours through September 30 are Wed-Sat 11 AM – 4 PM or by appointment call 520-405-5800.

Alice Leora Briggs, Luis Gonzalez Palma & Rodrigo Moya Exhibition at Etherton Gallery’s 30th Anniversary Opening.

Charles Spillar — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 17:10:45 +0000

The Etherton Gallery is having its first exhibition of the 2010-2011 season, Ojos bien abiertos/Eyes Wide Open opening September 7 and running through November 6, 2010.

It is part of a yearlong celebration of Etherton Gallery’s 30^th Anniversary. The show features sgrafitto drawings by Alice Leora Briggs, hand-colored gelatin silver photographs by Guatemalan photographer, Luis Gonzalez Palma and documentary photographs by Mexican photographer Rodrigo Moya. Together these artists give the viewer access to intimate moments, insider views and documentary images that challenge the cultural myths and historical understanding that have conditioned our appraisal of Latin America.

Coral by Luis Gonzalez Palma

The Etherton Gallery will host an artist reception Saturday, September 11, 7-10 pm at the gallery. Luis Gonzalez Palma, who lives in Argentina, is traveling to Tucson in one of his few trips to the United States this year, to attend the reception and will speak at the Center for Creative Photography the next day.

Observar en Silencio by Alice Leora Briggs

Etherton Gallery will show new work by Alice Leora Briggs as well as a number of works from Dreamland: The Way Out of Juarez, a collaboration with writer Charles Bowden, which she describes as part “illuminated manuscript” and part “crime blotter.” Briggs’ sgraffito drawings reveal the otherwise untold story of the victims, bystanders, and collaborators in the Juarez drug wars. Images from a series of postage stamp styled drawings like Silencio make clear that sins of omission are in fact political acts that can have the same deadly consequences as sins of commission, regardless of who perpetrates them.

Eyes Wide Open showcases work by Palma, including photographs from the series, Your Gaze Distorts Me Without Knowing It (translated from Spanish), which features portraits of young women with bleached, riveting eyes. The series, inspired by Portuguese poet, Fernando Pessoa (1888-1935), articulates Palma’s belief that, “when we see, we do not see what we see, we see who we are.” In Palma’s words these portraits “. . . support an imagined gaze, to establish a relation that does not exist in reality, but does create its own reality.”

LaPesca Milagrosa by Rodrigo Moya

Working in the tradition of Henri Cartier Bresson and Manuel Alvarez Bravo, Mexican photographer Rodrigo Moya covered political unrest throughout Latin America during the 1950s and 1960s. Part photojournalist, part street photographer, Moya brought the human cost of civil and military uprisings and the people who lived through these turbulent times to the pages of magazines such as Impacto, El Espectador, Politica, Sucesos and Siempre! Moya documents not only the newsworthy event, he provides us with the insider’s view, as though his subjects were waiting for his camera. Eyes Wide Open features a selection of Moya’s most iconic images from this period, including his photographs of the charismatic Che Guevara.

Etherton Gallery will host an artist reception at the gallery Saturday, September 11, 7 to 10 pm. Luis Gonzalez Palma and Alice Leora Briggs will attend. The following day, September 12 at 2 pm, Luis Gonzalez Palma will give a talk about his work at the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona.

Etherton Gallery is located in SoCo at 135 South 6th Avenue in downtown Tucson, AZ 85701. Regular business hours are Tuesday — Saturday, 11 am-5 pm and by appointment. For more information, contact the gallery at (520) 624-7370 or info@ethertongallery.com

The Effects of SB 1070 Seen Though Art Of Our Youth

Charles Spillar — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 23:45:05 +0000

Sarah Gonzales & students L-R Katherine, May, Kim Espe, Brianna, Margaret, Jusu, Paul

A showcase of the visual arts created by students involved in an art program Nuestra Voz: Latino Youth Initiative Youth, Art & Activism was presented to the public yesterday. Almost 40 students participated in the art program creating paintings, photography, sculpture from recycled materials and video. This unique art explored the positive effective ways to express their feelings and commitments as they participate in improving their community. Sarah Gonzales led the arts program.

Our Leaders Are Us by Espe, May, Addriana, Peter, Greg, Iris, Vanessa

The talks and exhibition of student’s work took place Friday, July 16^th at the YWCA Frances McClelland Leadership Center at 525 N. Bonita Avenue. Congressman Raul Grijalva gave a very moving motivational speech to the audience of children and adults.

The presentations during the program allowed the students to talk about their artwork and what they were expressing through it. By viewing the work you could obviously see the healing needed by these unique individuals through their expression from their heart. Each creation expressed adverse effects on their lives the current pending legislation will have on them and their families.

Roots of Knowledge by Margaret, Paul, Syrena, Athena

The YWCA Tucson Racial Justice Program has received a $200,000 grant from the Kellogg Foundation to support our Latino Youth Initiative: Nuestra Voz/Our Voice. In the wake of the recent legislation dealing with immigration and the attempt by the Arizona Legislature to ban ethnic studies programs, Nuestra Voz is particularly needed and the YWCA is grateful for this very generous support.

Graffiti Nametags by ALL students in program

Student Work

Nuestra Voz will build on ten years of effective racial healing work to develop and implement a new initiative for the emerging, too often silenced, Latino youth population in an on-going effort to combat prejudice, intolerance and to work towards racial healing and youth empowerment. Nuestra Voz will:

Develop Latino youth leadership
Heal historical trauma through dialogue
Promote positive cultural identity through youth initiated community racial healing projects
Provide training for teachers/administrators to promote a positive healing experience.

Nuestra Voz/Our Voice is one of 119 awarded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to support racial equity and healing and the only grant awarded in Arizona.

Etherton Gallery New Photography Exhibition Opening June 8.

Charles Spillar — Sat, 29 May 2010 18:17:23 +0000

John Muir (standing) & John Burroughs at the Grand Canyon (1909) PHOTO by Karl Moon

Opening June 8 and running through August 28, 2010 at Etherton Gallery, A Grand View: Arizona Landscape Photography 1871-2010, is an historical survey of landscape photographs, featuring a selection of images by more than 30 photographers including: including: Ansel Adams, Linda Connor, Forman Hanna, Eliot Erwitt, Timothy O’Sullivan, Richard Misrach, Frederick Sommer, as well as nationally known Arizona photographers including William Lesch, Jay Dusard, Edward McCain, and many more.

Sahuaras (1890) PHOTO by Willis P. Haynes

Cactus Tree, Arizona (1875) PHOTO by Elias A. Bonine

Grand Canyon of the Colorado River, Mouth of Kanab Wash Looking West (1872) PHOTO by William Bell

A Grand View features work from individual artists and Etherton’s extensive inventory by some of the most important masters of the medium, illuminating our long standing and storied fascination with Arizona. Beginning with the first government sponsored surveys of the West, Timothy O’Sullivan’s Black Cañon, Colorado River from Camp 8, Looking Above (1871), made for the US Geological Survey, is an image of a man seated in a boat with a box of camera equipment, dwarfed by the jagged canyon walls that frame the image. Although O’Sullivan could only hint at the roaring motion of the river, the image creates the impression of Arizona as a dangerous uncharted frontier, when the transcontinental railroad was just 100 miles away.

Medicine Wheel, Sedona, Arizona ( 1989) PHOTO by Debra Bloomfield

Among the contemporary works included in A Grand View is Santa Catalina Sunset, Arizona (2001) by Jeff Smith, a large format color photograph that romanticizes the wild beauty of Arizona’s monsoons. Smith’s use of color — saturated velvety blues and inky blacks — heightens the contrast with the dramatic veins of lightning that dominate the Tucson city lights below. William Lesch’s black and white topographic view of the Tucson valley, Developing Thunderstorm over the Tucson Valley, Triptych, August, 2006 makes clear that Arizona’s beauty resides in its treasured wide open spaces and the lofty clouds that rise and fall as they pass over the valley. A Grand View captures the paradox of Arizona, its great cultural history, natural beauty and iconoclastic spirit, reminding us why we call Arizona home.

Motel, Southern Arizona (2007) PHOTO by Scott B. Davis

Canyon de Chelly (1910) PHOTO by Roland Reed

Seen and Not Seen PHOTO by Ken Rosenthal

A Grand View: Arizona Landscape Photography 1871-2010 opens June 8 and runs through August 28, 2010. Etherton Gallery is located in SoCo at 135 S. 6^th Ave., in downtown Tucson, AZ. Summer hours are Tuesday – Saturday, 11am-5pm and by appointment. For information about the exhibition please contact Etherton Gallery at (520) 624-7370 or info@ethertongallery.com

New Diana Yakowitz Photography Exhibition at KUZU Friday!

Charles Spillar — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 05:06:45 +0000

Rural Graffiti By Diana Yakowitz

Diana Yakowitz’s photography is more than just recording the visible. More than shades and shapes they are a visible interior journey she has followed revealing her inner self. Her new exhibition opens this Friday, March 26, at the unique KUZU gallery here in Tucson.

Loving Memory by Diana Yakowitz

She shoots few frames and often waits for some recognition to occur. Diana studies her images afterwards and often discovers something that influences her work later or an overlooked image which she views with new eyes and interprets its true meaning.

Reaching Out by Diana Yakowitz

The images she chose for this show were taken in the past year with a few exceptions. Most of the images are from the Pacific Northwest near Seattle and have in common some degree of human interaction or intrusion on nature. If you read the titles you will better understand the journey of discovery she has been following.

Lessons From The Dunes by Diana Yakowitz

Intervention by Diana Yakowitz

As a child, she opened the back of her first camera and accidentally exposed all of the film. She stated “that unfortunate experience made me look upon photography equipment as something to avoid, overcome, put up with, pull one over on, cheat, use, abuse, circumvent, and then finally befriend.”

Careful by Diana Yakowitz

Since that first learning experience, Yakowitz’s photographic works have been the result of her interior journey through the seventies, influenced by the sixties, honed in the eighties, on pause in the nineties, and with many forks and dead ends in the ‘roads’ leading up to today.

Something To Hold Onto by Diana Yakowitz

In searching for an overall title for her new exhibition, she kept coming back to the image above titled “Something to Hold Onto.” For her, it expressed frustrations and her longing laid bare. She found the title fit not only this image but also the entire show with all illustrating, sometimes subtly, this expression in a literal or metaphoric way.

She told me she couldn’t think of a better expression for her relationship with photography itself than “something to hold onto.” It seems to say it all, a true reflection of her inner self, reflected in her unique photographs. As you view her exhibition you will understand her visible journey and see the inner journey she is still following.

L A Shroud by Diana Yakowitz

If you would like to see a much larger body of her work and her journey through life visit this site:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/37498647@N06/3617797619/

The exhibition of Diana Yakowitz’s new photographs is being held at one of Tucson’s newest unique gallery, KUZU, located at 1991 E. Ajo Way, Suite 161.

Opening hours: 6:00PM -9:00 PM

For more information call: 520-624-7290

Directions to KUZU

FEATURED ARTIST: Photographer, Karen A. Dombrowski-Sobel

Charles Spillar — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:48:02 +0000

From the moment she saw a print developing in a tray years ago she was entranced with the magic of photography. She learned early on to handle a negative in the darkroom and make it speak from her soul. Ever since that moment, she has followed her passion with her camera.

Karen’s award winning work certainly speaks for itself. Her vision seems to always come from somewhere inside herself as each of her subjects speak through her, revealing some meaning of itself and herself in the finished photograph.

She says the process of selecting the precise second to expose the film comes through a meditative process where her intuition takes over and light, form and feeling are transposed through her camera and herself. Her spiritual insight has given her an eye for the unusual from the ordinary. By viewing the images below you will SEE the unique professionalism she has achieved.

Slide 1 of 20.
First Day at Nursery School
Source: Karen Dombrowski-Sobel Photo

For more examples of her photography visit her web site at: http://www.kadsphoto.com and view the many subjects she has captured. Everyday she is creating something new following her passion. The sensitive Portraits, unusual Textured Photographs and her Nude photos on her web page clearly demonstrate her uniqueness and sensitivity to her subjects.

Karen is presently focused on photographing trees and plants for an upcoming book titled: Visualizing a Greener Planet. She senses the urgency to show how important and beautiful trees are to our existence. She feels man’s effort to fulfill the desire for bigger homes and buildings, has been obliterating our natural growth. She hopes this new work will help create an intimate relationship with nature that the viewer can feel.

The photographer and her husband moved to Tucson from their former home in New York City a few years ago. The life changing 9/11 tragedies had a major effect on their lives since her husband was working on Wall Street as a stock trader a short distance from the World Trade Center collapse. He experienced first hand the horror of something that most of us can only imagine. In a few short minutes both their lives were changed forever.

It is obvious to anyone viewing Karen’s work the sensitivity coming through her images and the abundant love she has for her subjects. The Flux Gallery (2960 N. Swan Road, Suite 136) at Plaza Palomino and Arts Marketplace (40 W Broadway Blvd) are presently exhibiting her work.