07/05/2013
Conversations 5:10
Recently, two of my works were selected by curator, Graham Shearing for an exhibition called
Conversations 5:10. The show will be at Most Wanted Fine Art Gallery in Garfield from Friday, July 5th through the end of the month. Graham is a collector, critic, curator, consultant and writer with a strong art presence in the Pittsburgh area. The exhibition is a curated group show, initiated by the current Associated Artists of Pittsburgh 102nd Annual at the Carnegie Museum, and engaging other members of the AAP membership. The works chosen encourage a discussion between the artist and the viewer, based on the content of the individual work, aiming at a form of unblurring. This show of small scale works will address the idea of the conversation piece as a contemporary phenomenon.
While working with Graham to choose my work for the exhibition, I was happily surprised that he gravitated toward two of my images from my series,
A City in Distress:
Adult Books and
Memory. My work that I feel people are most familiar with is created and hand crafted digitally like a painting. However, the
City In Distress series shows the roots of my photographic knowledge, when I was a purist photographer working purely with traditional means. Below you will find a list of participating artists, images from the current show and further information on the project,
A City In Distress.
Artists from the AAP Annual at CMA:
Karen Kaighin, Bill Wade, Matthew Liam Conboy, David Montano and Christopher Ruane
AAP Member Artists: David Stanger, Bill DeBernardi, Tim Menees, Shawn Quinlan, Thomas Clyde Waters, Judith Schumacher, Jeff Schwarz, Daniel Marsula, Bob Ziller, Jo-Anne Bates
Music by "Life in Balance" with Ami Sciulli and Steve Sciulli.
A City In Distress
In 2004, the city of Pittsburgh was declared to be in Act 47 distressed status. From afar, the city’s skyline was beautiful and seemed to be full of possibilities, however, in early 2004 it seemed as if Pittsburgh’s renaissance was in great danger. Pittsburgh had the worst credit rating of any major U.S. city and with business anchors like Federated’s Lazarus department store closing, the future looked bleak. It appeared that jobs in the city were becoming harder to find and the population was rapidly decreasing.
That year, I began a year-long study of Pittsburgh’s declining economic environment. Over the course of the study, I immersed myself fully in the streets of the city. I spent my days photographing eyesores, depressed areas and businesses that had little or no hope of bringing prosperity to Pittsburgh. Photographing a city in the midst of a renaissance that was said to be on the verge of bankruptcy uncovered much of Pittsburgh’s true identity.
The two images chosen for this exhibition are part of a portfolio of 25 images. The work visually explores a city that is both moving forward and at the same time suffering from being stuck in the past. Close examination revealed a city on the verge of something, for better or for worse.
At times it becomes unclear of the time period in which the images were taken. This is amplified through the process used. Working with film, a traditional view camera and experimental toning techniques, the large scale works are made to resemble an image that could have been taken decades ago and aged in their own individual way.
It has been ten years since this study was completed. Maybe it is time for Pittsburgh to be revisited; but for now, I will let you decide how the story ends.
* [b]Please click the link to explore the series
A City In Distressl[/b].
http://www.christopherruane.com/Set/A-City-In-Distress*
