Talk about late bloomers. Photography may have been invented in 1839, but for well over a century it struggled to gain acceptance as a fine arts medium. Evidence of its triumph as an art form is spilling across the Tampa Bay area in three strong exhibitions. Two shows are in St. Petersburg. The Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) showcases a compact collection of works spanning 1850 to 2002. 531 Central Fine Arts features four Bay area photographers working in disparate genres. At Tampa Museum of Art (TMA), there's an enormous traveling survey of American photo and photo-based images, from 1960 on, an exhibition that easily qualifies as a blockbuster.
Together, the exhibitions present a rare opportunity to review photography's breadth and its relationship to the human experience, from 19th century portraiture and realism to 20th century surrealism, photomontage and photojournalism; from daguerreotypes, early platinum gum and albumen prints to the digital explosion; from documentation of nature to the embrace of consumer culture and media. All of this equals far more than a history lesson; many of the images will linger because of their extraordinary aesthetic or intellectual appeal, or sheer emotional impact.
What makes a photograph qualify as fine art? Is it strictly consensus? In the 19th century, posed figures and "street" photography were not considered fine art; today these vintage prints are prized museum collectibles. The simple answer is that fine art can transport the viewer beyond the image. Think about your family photos; however precious and pleasing, they're just family photos.
One fact is clear: Lens-based work, which soared in the 1990s, continues to reign. With the rise of conceptual art in the "60s, old allegiances to painting began to crumble. While painting was increasingly perceived as an irrelevant, elitist activity, mixed media and photography steadily gained respect. For legions of young artists, photography now remains the most accessible and democratic art form. As USF Art Department chair Wallace Wilson reports, most art students enter as painters but eventually switch to photography.
It's useful to begin this overview with the early photos in the MFA's Hannahs Gallery, now dedicated to revolving photography exhibitions. The MFA, with 1,100 photos, is considered to have one of the best collections in the Southeast.
But "Famous Faces: Celebrity Portraits in Photography," a small survey from their permanent collection, makes "celebrity" something of a misnomer. Would novelist George Sand, deceased since 1876, qualify as a celebrity? But we get the point. Everyone in this group definitely had their 15 minutes-plus.
The portraits, nearly all in black-and-white, are a serious diversion from the charming and occasionally irreverent Red Grooms Exhibition, situated nearby. Among the royal lineup of famed photographers are Nadar, Phillipe Halsman, Edward Steichen and Richard Avedon, with portraits from the world of literature, science, music, art and Hollywood.
By contrast, "New Bag," 2002, by Neil J. Farkas, is an anomaly within an historical collection that begins with an 1850 glass-cased portrait of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Farkas' Iris print, or giclee print, simulates a Warhol portrait of Marilyn Monroe by uniting tiny unrelated images in a process similar to that of Chuck Close. Printed on a shopping bag, it symbolizes the continuing relationship (or stranglehold) of mass culture on fine arts. Several photos remind us that the notion of minimal dates back long before the 1960s or 70s. I'm thinking of Steichen's beautiful minimal portrait of Charlie Chaplin, from 1925, and Arnold Newman's 1946 equally Spartan image of Igor Stravinsky.
Despite variations in style and medium, portraits also reveal or conceal subjects' identities or personalities. Avedon's leathery-skinned image of poet Ezra Pound is a study in evasion whereas Halsman's portrait of Albert Einstein's wrinkled face and soulful gaze exposes unexpected vulnerability. By contrast, while Steichen's mesmerizing, lace-veiled Gloria Swanson looks directly at us, she nevertheless remains a mysteriously elusive art object.
One of my personal favorites is Avedon's magnificent 1955 silver print of singer Marian Anderson singing Verdi at the Metropolitan Opera. The portrait seems a twist on turn-of-the-century Symbolist-era art when closed eyes, billowing hair and pervasive silence were common components. With her lips pursed, eyes shut, and stylized wisps of hair intruding into the classic Avedon white background, it's easy to imagine the sound of her powerful voice though we never actually hear a single note.
From the museum, it's a short hop to the elegant 531 Central Fine Arts and "F-Stop: 4 Perspectives." It's no secret that the management here could write the book on gallery standards. With this photo exhibition filling the entire wall space, at long last, nary a flowery painting in sight, it's gallery Nirvana. Every work is uniformly framed in black and hung at the exact same distance from the ceiling, an attention to detail that enhances the whole viewing experience. Fortunately for us, the art here was also carefully selected and balanced among various genres.
University of Tampa professor Timothy Kennedy's powerful black-and-white digital giclee prints of the late blues musician John Lee Hooker were taken in 1975 (The 2002 dates document the year of their printing). Hooker invited the photographer onto the makeshift stage at the Anchorage National Guard Armory. From this unique vantage point he captured the raw emotional experience and atmospheric haze of the hall where he remembers "the raucous crowd of lumberjack-hip kids who had no clue who (Hooker) was."
In Kennedy's close-up photo, "I'm Bad like Jesse James," the music nearly bursts beyond the two-dimensional image.
Herb Snitzer, famed for his portraits of jazz greats, has never shown his sensitive nature photos. Especially impressive are "Mystic-Time," which boasts wonderful abstract patterns of waves, and "Chocolate-Time."
Simqu, a professor at the Ringling School of Art and Design in Sarasota, describes herself as moving beyond straight photography. She considers herself a "concept-oriented" artist using photographic images and words to critique parallel cultures. In her "Cultureshots" series, ancient, thought-provoking writings juxtapose compelling contemporary issues and commentary. Simqu softens them with an intuitive playfulness. A former NEA recipient, she has just been awarded a five-year Fulbright scholarship for this body of work.
Beth Reynolds' photojournalism blends personal and societal anxieties. Poignant images of her mother's day-to-day experiences with breast cancer are balanced by another series aimed at support and fundraising for the disease.
At the Tampa Museum of Art, "Photography's Multiple Roles: Art, Document, Market, Science," is a not-to-be-missed show that originated at Columbia College's Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago. This is a photography who's-who (as of 1998 when it was organized). To mention a few star shooters: Nan Goldin, Sally Mann, Annie Leibowitz, Joel Peter Witkin, Carrie Mae Weems, Barbara Kruger, Chuck Close, Fazal Sheik, and twins Doug and Mike Starn. Traditional and classic photographers include Ansel Adams, Harry Callahan, Irving Penn, Edward Steichen and Minor White.
Images are grouped loosely into four subject headings: art, document, market and science. Considering the size of the exhibition, these divisions are helpful in making sense of so many pictures at once. On the other hand, many of these photos don't fit neatly into single categories.
Images reflecting the photography's union with science are hung in the Focus Gallery. Even the mechanics of photography are included. Abelard Morell's intriguing "Across the Street in Our Bedroom" is produced with a camera obscura (Latin for darkroom), a device dating back to the Renaissance. This fascinating precursor to the camera produces upside-down images after hours of exposure. Morell, long associated with this method, creates photographs that look like double images but result from purely optical effects.
By contrast, famed photographer Jerry Uelsmann's double image of floating trees results from his groundbreaking technical work, manipulation within the darkroom, and of course his stunning aesthetic sensibility.
Catherine Chalmers' "Praying Mantis Eating a Caterpillar," is from her disturbing but elegant series on predators and prey in the food chain. Her totally white background converts the secret life of insects into an Avedon-like fashion shoot.
Because of the bounty of fine images, here's an abbreviated heads-up on some of the other memorable photos in the Special Exhibitions Gallery and its entrance. Ellen Cowin's large print, "Untitled (Magritte)," 1998, is outstanding. Three mysterious hooded figures include one posing as a painter. The other two are subjects on a canvas resting on a large easel. I like to interpret this photo as part of the competitive relationship between photography and painting; ludicrous as it sounds, a few decades ago some art world theorists predicted the demise of painting.
Other striking crossovers in style and medium include Judith Golden's "The Juggler," 1989-93, dye diffusion prints with oil paint, and Alfredo Jaar's politically charged mixed-media conceptual installation.
The list goes on. Now it's your turn to experience these stellar exhibitions.
Adrienne M. Golub can be reached by e-mail at adrienne.golub@weeklyplanet.com.
This article appears in Oct 23-29, 2002.
