Showing posts with label history. Show all posts
Showing posts with label history. Show all posts

Monday, March 31, 2025

Monroe Gallery Announces Representation of Bing Guan

 March 31, 2025


massive crowd of protesters t Rally in Causeway Bay with large advertising sign showing eyes, Hong Kong, December 8, 2019


Santa Fe, NM - Monroe Gallery of Photography is honored to announce exclusive representation of photographer Bing Guan for fine art print sales.

Guan is a Chinese American full-time freelance photographer, journalist, and artist based in New York City. He is currently an adjunct professor of photography at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Born in Australia and raised in the United States, Bing attended Dartmouth College and holds a BA cum laude in history from Columbia University. He has reported from across the U.S., and from places including Antigua, Burma, Mexico, Rwanda, and Hong Kong.

Bing is a regular contributor to Reuters, Bloomberg, and The New York Times. He has been awarded grants from the Parsons School of Design, the Ucross Foundation, and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts.

Bing speaks fluent Mandarin Chinese, and is certified in HEFAT and as a FAA Part 107 drone pilot. 


Monroe Gallery will exhibit examples of Guan’s work at the 2025 Photography Show presented by AIPAD in booth #C8, April 23 – 27 at The Park Avenue Armory in New York City.

Friday, March 28, 2025

Ryan Vizzions Photographer Inspired by Atlanta’s Legacy and Activism

 Via Discover Atlanta

March 28, 2025


 


 Ryan Vizzions describes Atlanta as a uniquely diverse melting pot shaped by its history. He credits Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the city’s role as a hub for African Americans during segregation as foundational to its identity. This legacy, he says, makes Atlanta exceptional not only in the South but across the entire country as well.

Photography as a Purposeful Journey


color photograph of a hearse  passing the side of a building painted toth likeness of John Lewise and "Hero" during the procession of civil rights activist John Lewis
Ryan captured this photo during the procession of civil rights activist John Lewis. 
(Photo by Ryan Vizzions)


Vizzions’ photography began as a personal outlet but evolved into a passion for storytelling. Over the years, he embraced various forms, from photojournalism to architectural and street photography. He views his work as a medium for raising awareness and documenting social movements.

Standing Rock and Activism


color photograph of back of person on horseback facing a line of heavily armed police during the Standing Rock protests in North Dakota

This photo from Standing Rock is one of the most influential in Ryan’s career.
(Photo by Ryan Vizzions)

One of the defining moments in Vizzions’ career was his documentation of the Standing Rock protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline. Inspired by a haunting resemblance to the Civil Rights era, he felt compelled to witness the movement firsthand. What began as a spontaneous trip turned into a six-month immersion, during which he lived at the camp and captured some of the most recognized images of the movement.

Honoring Atlanta’s Modern-Day Leaders

color photograph of civil rights attorney and activist Gerald Griggs, president of the Georgia NAACP, in front of brick wall with grafitti and a church spire in background with sign "Jesus Saves"

This is one of Ryan’s final images for Colors of Atlanta.

(Photo by Ryan Vizzions)


Vizzions chose to highlight contemporary changemakers for his Atlanta-focused project for “Colors of Atlanta.” He selected civil rights attorney and activist Gerald Griggs, president of the Georgia NAACP. Vizzions first met Griggs during the Black Lives Matter protests in Atlanta and later during the Ahmaud Arbery murder trial. Impressed by Griggs’ relentless advocacy in the courtroom and on the ground, Vizzions wanted to create a powerful portrait that Griggs and his family could be proud of.

Auburn Avenue: Connecting Past, Present and Future

Vizzions selected Auburn Avenue, a historic street in Atlanta, as the backdrop for his photograph. Known as Black Wall Street, Auburn Avenue holds deep cultural significance. It was home to jazz legends at the Royal Peacock and the pulpit of Dr. King at Ebenezer Baptist Church. Vizzions sought to intertwine Atlanta’s rich past with its present and future.

Stepping Beyond Photojournalism

color photograph of Ryan Vizzions photographing  on Auburn  Avenue in Atlanta
Ryan captured the image in Auburn Avenue. (Photo by Andrew Clark)

Although Vizzions’ background is rooted in documentary and photojournalism, this project pushed him into the editorial realm. Initially nervous, he quickly found his rhythm, collaborating with Griggs to create powerful, meaningful images. He expressed pride in the final result, seeing the work as a collective achievement.

Atlanta’s Influence on his Art

Vizzions draws continuous inspiration from Atlanta. For him, photographing Atlanta is more than capturing its skyline; it’s about preserving the spirit of its people, honoring its leaders and ensuring that its legacy endures.


Learn more about other talented photographers featured on “Colors of Atlanta” and watch the TV series.


Thursday, March 27, 2025

Introducing the 2025 World Press Photo Contest winners

 Via World Press Photo

March 27, 2025


 

Reflections from the ​​2025 Contest global jury (With Nina Berman)


 Chosen from nearly 60,000 entries by 3,778 photographers from 141 countries, the award-winning images are those of struggle and defiance, but also of human connection and courage – visually stunning work that draws you deeper into stories behind the news. This enriching selection of the world’s best photojournalism and documentary photography was chosen by an independent international jury based on their visual quality, storytelling approach, and commitment to diverse representation.

"My hope is that tomorrow’s lawyers, reporters, and policymakers will be affected and moved by these images, and that perhaps they will strike a chord in some of today’s 11-year-olds, who, having forged the beginning of a relationship with them, will continue their life journey knowing that pictures, and the stories they tell, matter.

We made our choices with an eye on the final mix: as much as a World Press Photo Contest award is an immense recognition for photographers, often working under difficult circumstances, it is also a recap of the world’s major events. Yet, what we have here is just a partial overview. Not all the events that were topical in 2024 were covered by the photos submitted, but the jury selected images, I believe, fully aware of their power, and of the legitimacy that the award would lend them." – Lucy Conticello, director of Photography, Le Monde, and 2025 Contest global jury chair


Full collection of awarded photos and stories here.

Tuesday, February 4, 2025

"I Photographed January 6. Trump’s Pardons Can’t Erase What I Saw." --Gallery Photographer Nate Gowdy

Via Columbia Journalism Review

February 4, 2025

Reflections from an independent photojournalist.

black and white photograph view of the steps of the US Capitol swarming with rioters and Trump flags with  a cloud of tear gas on January 6, 2021
America loves to rebrand its sins as myth. In four years, MAGA loyalists have recast the January 6 insurrection as resurrection. (All photos by Nate Gowdy)

February 4, 2025

By Nate Gowdy


"This is why I document: America loves to rebrand its sins as myth. In four years, MAGA loyalists have rewritten January 6 from every angle. Rioters have been framed as leftists in disguise, police as “crisis actors,” the attack an FBI setup—or, more outrageously, citizens on a “normal tourist visit.” By 2025, revisionism is big business. Conservative media churns out books, podcasts, and stump speeches recasting insurrection as resurrection. But my images tell another story: they depict a nation in fracture, where well-meaning neighbors and dutiful relatives cling to their “Big Lie” with an unwavering sincerity that doesn’t just reject facts—it inoculates against them, leaving everyone vulnerable to propaganda and less capable of critical thought." 

Full article here:  I Photographed January 6. Trump’s Pardons Can’t Erase What I Saw. - Columbia Journalism Review

Tuesday, January 28, 2025

Free screening of the acclaimed documentary "The Loving Story" February 15

 




Monroe Gallery of Photography is pleased to present a free screening of the acclaimed documentary film "The Loving Story", a simple, profound love story between one man and one woman who in and of themselves were unlikely crusaders in the fight for equity.


Saturday, February 15. Film begins promptly at 4:30. Seating is limited, RSVP essential.


In conjunction with the new exhibition "Loving", on view through April 12, 2025



black and white promotional movie poster for The Loving Story, with text over photograph of man and woman standing in doorway


Friday, January 17, 2025

Monroe Gallery Photographs In Feature On Martin Luther King Day Celebrations Across New Mexico

 Via Pasatiempo

January 17, 2025


Come together: MLK celebrations across New Mexico

black and white photograph of Martin Luther King Jr speaking on stage with a trash can labeled "give" at a rally in Detroit, 1963 Photo by Francis Miller Courtesy ©LIFE Picture Collection

Martin Luther King Jr at a rally in Detroit, 1963 Photo by Francis Miller Courtesy ©LIFE Picture Collection/Monroe Gallery of Photography


black and whote photograph of  Martin Luther King at Police Headquarters near cash register as he argued to reject bail and serve his sentence for disturbing the peace in Montgomery, Alabama, 1958

©Grey Villet: Martin Luther King at Police Headquarters, as he argued to reject bail and serve his sentence for disturbing the peace in Montgomery, Alabama, 1958  Courtesy of Monroe Gallery of Photography


As we enter a new era in American history on Monday, we would be wise to remember the following two sentences that the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke in the auditorium of the University of Oslo, Norway, upon receiving his Nobel Peace Prize on December 10, 1964:

“I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.”

The New Mexico Martin Luther King Jr. State Commission and other related or affiliated organizations invite everyone to come together this weekend to reflect and celebrate Rev. King’s legacy of nonviolent protest and resistance, of love and unity, and to help further build on Rev. King’s dream of a “Beloved Community.” Full article here.


black and white photograph of Martin Luther King marching with an American Flag behind him in Alabama, 1965
©Steve Schapiro: Martin Luther King, Selma March, Alabama, 1965 Courtesy of Monroe Gallery of Photography


black and white close up photograph of Martin Luther King speaking into a microphone at the Dexter  Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, 1955
©Grey Villet: Martin Luther King, Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, 1955 Courtesy of Monroe Gallery of Photography



details

Statewide MLK events, coordinated by the New Mexico MLK State Commission

Various times, Friday, January 17, through Monday, January 20

Albuquerque, Clovis, Santa Fe, Grants, Las Cruces, Farmington, Rio Rancho, Hobbs

Many events are free while some are ticketed and require registration

nmmlksc.org







Wednesday, January 8, 2025

Virtual Project: James Earl Carter 1924 - 2024

 

Virtual Project Exhibition

James Earl Carter Jr. (1924 - 2024) was the 39th president of the United States, serving from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party, Carter served as the 76th governor of Georgia from 1971 to 1975 and in the Georgia State Senate from 1963 to 1967. He was awarded the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize for work to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development. After lying in State in Washington, DC, Carter's remains will return to Georgia on January 9, 2025 for a private service at Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, where Carter taught Sunday School well into his 90s, before he's buried at the family home next to his wife, Rosalynn Carter. View the on-line exhibit here.



black and white photograph of Jimmy Carter holding a newspaper with the headline "Carter Wins" in 1977
Ken Hawkins: Carter Wins!, 1977


Sunday, January 5, 2025

WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6, 2021

 Via Spectrum Fine Art



WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6th, 2021

 

On January 20, 2017, Nate Gowdy stood at the U.S. Capitol, camera in hand, as Donald J. Trump—with right hand raised and left atop the Lincoln Bible—took the oath of office, vowing to end “American carnage.” It was an ominous prelude to a presidency that would redefine American political expression.

 Four years later, on January 6, 2021, Gowdy returned to Washington, DC, prepared to document Trump’s “Save America” rally at the Ellipse. Instead, he witnessed surreal scenes unfold: militants marching, kneeling in prayer, posing for group photos, breaking for hotdogs, rampaging against the Capitol’s sworn protectors, and leading thousands to defile the Inauguration Day stage.

 This fine art exhibition, WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6th, 2021, examines that day as a theater of chaos and conviction. Gowdy's stark, unflinching images depict the U.S. Capitol, one of democracy’s most sacred symbols, as it becomes a haunting set piece in a dystopian tableau of domestic terror—an inside job.

 Twice assaulted for being deemed "fake news," Gowdy persisted in exposing the truth. Shot on assignment for Rolling Stone, his images transcend traditional photojournalism, revealing the kinetic energy and raw emotions of insurrection: vulnerability, rage, fear, and euphoria. These are not just photographs of an event but intimate portraits of the humanity—and inhumanity—that defined it.

 Through this collection, Gowdy challenges viewers to confront the complexities of identity, power, and the fragility of democratic ideals. WITNESS invites us to reflect on the contradictions of that day, presenting the Capitol not only as a battleground but as a mirror to the nation itself. What do these images reveal about us—and what do they demand we reckon with?


In association with Monroe Gallery of Photography

Artist Reception 

Thursday January 16 // 6 - 9 p.m.

The artist will be in attendance.

1411 34th Avenue

Seattle, WA 98122

206.420.5495

Saturday, December 21, 2024

Eugene Tapahe's Jingle Dress Project Featured: Embracing Native American Traditions This Winter Solstice

Via Cowboys and Indians Magazine 

December 21, 2024


The Gift, Eugene Tapahe, 2022, Yellowstone National Park, WY, Art Heals: The Jingle Dress Project


"Earlier this fall, I had the wonderful opportunity to connect with and learn from Umatilla/Cayuse/Nez Perce jingle dress dancer Acosia Red Elk. In addition to sharing her beautiful performances, she is also a yoga instructor and a wellness advocate who has gained her wisdom by overcoming countless obstacles throughout her life, including losing her father at a young age and being burned in a fire as a child. The minute I met Acosia, I could feel that deep wisdom radiating from within her." --click for full article


The Gift, Eugene Tapahe, 2022, Yellowstone National Park, WY, Art Heals: The Jingle Dress Project

Eugene Tapahe is featured in the current Gallery exhibition Frozen In Time, on view through January 19, 2025.

Wednesday, December 18, 2024

Gallery Photographers Mark Peterson and Ashley Gilbertson Featured In NY Times "The Photos That Defined 2024"

 Via The New York Times

December 18, 2024

The Year In Pictures 2024


color photograph of seated row of young men in red MAGA hats and suites waiting for election results in 2024

West Palm Beach, Fla., Nov. 5

Waiting for election results at a Trump watch party at the Palm Beach Convention Center. They came faster than expected, with former President Donald J. Trump declared the winner early the next morning.

Mark Peterson for The New York Times

“It was before people knew Trump was going to win. It was shortly after they let a lot of the public in. They could have been waiting hours in line. They kept filing in and filling up the chairs until all of them were full. They were all dressed so alike. I took five frames and that was that.” — Mark Peterson


color photograph of young boys wit colorful-rimmed protective sunglasses watching solar eclipse


From the project “Watching the Total Eclipse Across North America,” April 8

As darkness raced across the sky during the total solar eclipse, people in Niagra Falls gathered outside to look up for a moment of reverence.

 Ashley Gilbertson for The New York Times







Monday, December 16, 2024

The Battle of The Bulge: December 16, 1944 to January 25, 1945

 December 16, 2024


black and white photograph of soliders in deep snow movinf in a line during the Battle of Ardennes, winter, 1944


#onthisday, December 16, in 1944, The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, the last major German offensive campaign of WWII began. With the onset of winter, the German army launched a counteroffensive that was intended to cut through the Allied forces in a manner that would turn the tide of the war in Hitler's favor. 

The "Bulge" was the largest and bloodiest single battle fought by the United States in World War II.

“I never wanted to be a fighter, but I always wanted to be a photographer. I decided to photograph portraits of the people in my unit, because they were the people I lived with. We slept together, we risked together. We did so much together. I never saw soldiers. I saw human beings. I saw red blood, human blood. The battlefield, in a way, helped me, because when the war is on, that’s all that it is, fighting all the time. You know that it can happen to you. What do you do about it? I took pictures.” –Tony Vaccaro


black and white photograph of 2 soldiers in deep snow near a snow-covered wagan during the Balltle of Ardennes, near Ottre, Belgiun in January, 1945


In the spring of 2025, Monroe Gallery of Photography will present a major exhibition commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. Details to be announced soon.


black and white photograph os 3 American soldiers aiming their rifles in snow covered foxhole during the Battle of the Bulge in the Hurtgen Forest



Monday, December 9, 2024

Monroe Gallery – A Photography Show for the Winter

 Via Joe McNally

December 9, 2024

black and white photograph of Mikhail Gorbachov standing in black coat and hat in a forest with snow



The new Monroe Gallery show is called Frozen In Time, which is the business we are in as photographers, no matter the temperature. But as painful as it can be to expose our fingers and cameras to the occasionally brutal ministrations of winter, those cold times of the calendar, and the resultant ice and snow make for truly memorable imagery. Hence the power of this show. A must see if you are in Santa Fe, and also important viewing online. Monroe’s archive of historically important imagery is so telling, and reverberates so deeply, that a perusal of their archives is basically a tour through our history.

Everything is harder to do in the cold, and so many of these images reflect the struggle of humankind to overcome the piercing blasts of deeply cold environments. In this show are the desperate attempts to fight off winter’s hold on the land, as well as the beautifully lyrical snow scenes of mountains, and the American West. And pictures of joy, as people enjoy the snow and ice, gliding and sliding and skating. But also seen are searing pictures from the front lines of war, as if war itself wasn’t enough utter misery.

I’m fortunate to be included in the show, with a hard won picture of the former president of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev. He was a pivotal figure in Russian history, presiding over the dissolution of the Soviet bloc in Eastern Europe, and guiding Russia, despite threats and opposition to a place of more openness to the West, and within its own politics. At once hailed and reviled, he won the Nobel Peace Prize, and became one of the most significant figures in history. At the same time, the reforms he tried to initiate earned him the enmity and disapproval of many Russians, particularly those in positions of power.

Hence the head shot in his office was insufficient in terms of storytelling. I wanted to bring him to the woods, where I could photograph him alone, in a stark environment indicating his isolation. It took some doing. I had to wrangle and push in the best persistent, annoying photographer mode I could. He wasn’t happy about it, but he came to the woods about three days after the office shoot, and stepped into the snow with his fancy shoes. He posed for about five minutes. And then, he shook my hand and spoke the only English word he said to me while we were together: “Goodbye.”

And he meant it.

Tuesday, December 3, 2024

The story behind the 'iconic' Buna shot from WWII

 Via Australian Photography

By Stephen Dando-Collins | 4 December 2024

black and white photograph of a wounded Australian soldier, Private George ‘Dick’ Whittington.  Barefoot, walking with the aid of a long stick, his eyes were covered by a rough bandage. Guiding Whittington was volunteer Papuan carrier Raphael Oimbari

George Silk’s The Blind Soldier. Later, Silk would say there was something distinctive about the two subjects. The Papuan carrier in particular grabbed his attention: “He was helping him so tenderly,” he said. Image: Australian War Memorial


Early on Christmas Day, 1942, 26-year-old George Silk rose from his cot at battalion HQ at Soputa in northeast Papua and began walking to the Buna battlefront 10km away.

Around his neck hung his two cameras – a Rolleiflex Standard for close-ups, and a 35mm Zeiss Ikon Contax fitted with a telephoto lens for distance shots.

Silk was a New Zealand camera shop assistant who’d turned up in the Canberra office of Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies in January 1940.

He talked Menzies into hiring him as Australia’s second government combat photographer, and after working in North Africa, Silk was reassigned by the Australian Department of Information (DOI) to the New Guinea campaign.

For close to three years Silk had striven to take the ‘great’ war picture, something to emulate or surpass Robert Capa’s famous 1937 shot from the Spanish Civil War, The Falling Soldier.

Now, with the Australians and Americans starting to gain the upper hand in the fight against the Imperial Japanese Army in Papua, Silk was anxious to get his best shot before the Battle of Buna-Gona ended.

So, on December 24 he dragged himself from his hospital bed outside Port Moresby, where he’d been laid low by malaria, and hitched a ride back to the front.

On the track to Old Strip, Silk, rounding a bend in the tall kunai grass, saw two men approaching side-by-side. One was a wounded Australian soldier, Private George ‘Dick’ Whittington.

Barefoot, walking with the aid of a long stick, his eyes were covered by a rough bandage. Guiding Whittington was volunteer Papuan carrier Raphael Oimbari, a farmer in his twenties.

It almost seemed as if Silk would be intruding if he photographed the pair. “I wanted to take the picture, but I didn’t at first,” he later recalled.

But his documentarian’s instincts kicked in. Using his Rolleiflex from the waist with the pair less than two metres away, Silk snapped a single shot without even looking down into the viewfinder.

Seemingly unaware of him, the wounded soldier and carrier passed Silk by. Hurrying after them, he obtained the soldier’s details before the pair continued on.

Later that day, Silk joined Whittington’s 2/10th Battalion. Clicking away in the thick of the fighting that afternoon, he collapsed face-down on the battlefield. Malaria had caught up with him. 

Towards sunset, an Aussie soldier found the photographer lying with the dead all around him. Evacuated to Moresby, Silk ended up in a malaria ward.

You can’t keep a good photographer down. Silk was soon back at the front. At Giropa Point on December 31 and January 1, he took what he considered his two best pictures of the war, close-ups beside Bren-gunners and Vickers-gunners with bullets whistling all around. Again, Silk collapsed with malaria, and again he ended up in hospital.

Meanwhile, another George, American Life photographer George Strock, snapped three dead American soldiers on Buna Beach.

In hospital, George Silk learned the DOI had banned his two Giropa Point photos – one showed a dead Digger, while one of the Bren-gunners had dropped down dead beside him seconds after he took his picture.

At the same time, Silk’s photo of Whittington and the ‘Fuzzy Wuzzy Angel’ was also banned for being ‘too graphic’.

Silk was incensed. So, he wined and dined a young female clerk working in the DOI’s Port Moresby office and brought her into a conspiracy.

She had prints of his three banned pictures made at the DOI’s Sydney photographic laboratory and sent to her.

She gave them to Silk, who passed them to a war correspondent friend, who had them approved by the American censor at GHQ in Brisbane. Silk then gave his prints to George Strock, who smuggled them to Life.

Strock knew the Pentagon banned publication of photos of American dead, but was appalled by apathy towards the war at home. He was determined to jolt his fellow Americans into getting behind their troops.

On March 8, 1943, Life published Silk’s The Blind Soldier, full page.

Readers hailed it the best picture of the war. A month later Silk was fired by the DOI. Parliamentary backbenchers called for him to be charged with treason. His friend Damien Parer resigned in protest at his treatment.

Meanwhile, Life management struggled for seven months to gain War Department approval to publish Strock’s Three Dead Americans.

Going all the way to the White House, they discovered that, like George Strock, President Roosevelt was determined to cement Americans behind the war effort by being honest with them. With his approval, Three Dead Americans appeared in Life on September 20, 1943, shocking America.

In 2014, Time magazine would describe it as ‘the photograph that won the war’. Two iconic images, and one amazing story. ❂


The Buna shots: The Amazing Story Behind Two Photographs that Changed the Course of World War Two, by Stephen Dando-Collins, is published by Australian Scholarly Publishing. It’s the never before told story of two arresting photographs, two courageous photographers, and the quest for truth in war. You can order a copy here: https://bit.ly/3ZQ5DpV


Friday, November 29, 2024

Images of Winter Are Frozen in Time

 Via Pasatiempo

November 29, 2024

black and white photograph of a design formed by snow in a wrought iron banister in New York in 1947

In the 2023 photograph Ancestral Strength by Eugene Tapahe, four Indigenous women — Cayuse, Umatilla, Newe Sogobia, and Tséstho’e — stand side by side wearing brightly colored traditional garb, staring toward the sky behind the photographer. The stark winter beauty of the background in Wyoming’s Teton National Park further highlights the women’s projected power.

In the 1949 photograph Southern Pacific Steam Engine by John Dominis, a steam engine plows through a snowy landscape at Donner Pass, California.

Both images showcase forms of strength, but that’s not the tie that binds them. Both are part of Frozen in Time, an exhibition that Monroe Gallery of Photography describes as an “imaginative survey of compelling images.” It covers a range of human experiences, from the joy of exploration in George Silk’s 1946 shot Tourists Climb Fox Glacier in Tasman National Park, taken in New Zealand, to the ugly brutality of war in Tony Vaccaro’s White Death, Pvt. Henry Irving Tannebaum Ottre, taken in Belgium in 1945. 

It opens with a reception from 4-6 p.m. Friday, November 29. — Brian Sandford


details

Through January 19

Monroe Gallery of Photography

112 Don Gaspar Avenue

505-992-0800, monroegallery.com

Sunday, November 24, 2024

Depths of winter: 'Frozen in Time' brings images of joy, despair to Monroe Gallery

 Via The Albuquerque Journal

By Kathaleen Roberts

November 24, 2024

sreenshot of Albuquerque Journal article on Monroe Gallery exhibition "Frozen In Time"


Winter brings both beauty and brutality.

Open at Santa Fe’s Monroe Gallery of Photography, “Frozen in Time” brings images of both joy and despair by some of the most renowned American photojournalists. The photographs cover the 2016 protests during the Standing Rock pipeline construction, a skating waiter at St. Moritz, Switzerland, in the early 1900s, and images of the grim winter conditions during World War II.

Several of the photojournalists worked for Life magazine.

"It always makes for a beautiful, serene, contemplative experience,” said Michelle Monroe, gallery co-owner, of the frosty season. “We know it’s cold, we know it’s quiet, we know there is a veil of light.”


black and white photograph of a waiter on ice skate and wearing a tuxedul skating with serving tray and drinks in St. Moritz, 1934

Alfred Eisenstaedt/Life Picture Collection: Ice Skating Waiter, St. Moritz, 1932


Alfred Eisenstaedt’s “Ice Skating Waiter” encapsulates the grace of skating while balancing a tray of glasses and liquor.

“He had a very rudimentary camera with glass plates,” Monroe said. “He said the whole thing was a technical challenge.”

The photographer focused on the chair until the waiter swanned by.


black and white photograph of 3 US soldiers in snow covered forest with guns aimed during the Battke of Hurtgen Forest, 1944
Tony Vaccaro: Battle of Hurtgen Forest, Germany, 1944


Tony Vaccaro’s photograph of soldiers partially buried in snow during the 88-day Battle of Hürtgen Forest captures the longest fight on German ground of World War II. An estimated 24,000 were killed, wounded or captured.

“There was no one more uncomfortable than the other,” Monroe said. “You couldn’t even find any comfort being together. (Vaccaro) said there was a lot of dark humor.”

In 2023, Navajo photographer Eugene Tapahe took “Ancestral Strength” in Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park.


color photograph of 4 Native women with colorful blankets wearing Jingle Dresses" in front of the Teton mountains, Wyomig
Eugene Tapahe
Ancestral Strength, Teton National Park, WY, Cayuse, Umatilla, Newe Sogobia and Tséstho’e, 2023

Tapahe was studying at Utah’s Brigham Young University when the pandemic hit. He decided to take four Native jingle dancers (two of whom were his daughters) across the country.

“The jingle dress has always been used for healing,” Monroe said. “Since the schools were closed, perhaps he could heal the country. They went all over performing. It had a tremendous effect on people.”

Those stops included Mount Rushmore, Yosemite and New York’s Central Park.

Ryan Vizzions photographed the protests over the Standing Rock pipeline in 2017, including a portrait of a medicine man.


Native American wrapped in colorful blanket with tipis behind him durng a snwo storm at the Standing Rock protestes in North Dakota in 2016
Ryan Vizzions: Standing Rock, Winter, 2016

“He was a spiritual counselor and guide for everything there to keep people in focus,” Monroe said.

“(For) a lot of the older photographers, in order to be put on the front page, it was to get out there and get a shot of this latest snowstorm,” Monroe said. “She was part of the Photo League (cooperative.) They were shut down by the Red Scare movement for being subversive.”

black and white photo of design made from snow in a wrought iron railing in New York, 194556
Ida Wyman: Wrought Iron Design in Snow, New York City, 1945

The photographs also include images of the 1939 Russo-Finnish War, harsh winter conditions in the northern Soviet Union taken during its collapse in the 1990s and several ice skating scenes, including Truman Capote at New York’s famed Rockefeller Plaza in 1959, as well as tranquil snow scenes of the American West.

long line of Japanese soldiers in training snaking through deep snow in Hokkaido, Japan, 1951
Carl Mydans/Life Picture Collection: The newly created 'Japanese Police Force' moves out of camp for winter training, Hokkaido, Japan, 1951

Monroe Gallery specializes in photojournalism. It was the recipient of the 2010 Alfred Eisenstaedt Award for Excellence in Photojournalism.


'FROZEN IN TIME'

WHEN: Opening Reception on Friday, Nov. 29, 4-6 pm; exhibition continues through Jan. 19, 2025

WHERE: Monroe Gallery, 112 Don Gaspar Ave., Santa Fe

MORE INFO: monroegallery.com, 505-992-0800

Thursday, November 21, 2024

WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6, 2021

 WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6th, 2021

January 9 - February 15, 2025

 

On January 20, 2017, Nate Gowdy stood at the U.S. Capitol, camera in hand, as Donald J. Trump—with right hand raised and left atop the Lincoln Bible—took the oath of office, vowing to end “American carnage.” It was an ominous prelude to a presidency that would redefine American political expression.

 Four years later, on January 6, 2021, Gowdy returned to Washington, DC, prepared to document Trump’s “Save America” rally at the Ellipse. Instead, he witnessed surreal scenes unfold: militants marching, kneeling in prayer, posing for group photos, breaking for hotdogs, rampaging against the Capitol’s sworn protectors, and leading thousands to defile the Inauguration Day stage.

 This fine art exhibition, WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6th, 2021, examines that day as a theater of chaos and conviction. Gowdy's stark, unflinching images depict the U.S. Capitol, one of democracy’s most sacred symbols, as it becomes a haunting set piece in a dystopian tableau of domestic terror—an inside job.

 Twice assaulted for being deemed "fake news," Gowdy persisted in exposing the truth. Shot on assignment for Rolling Stone, his images transcend traditional photojournalism, revealing the kinetic energy and raw emotions of insurrection: vulnerability, rage, fear, and euphoria. These are not just photographs of an event but intimate portraits of the humanity—and inhumanity—that defined it.

 Through this collection, Gowdy challenges viewers to confront the complexities of identity, power, and the fragility of democratic ideals. WITNESS invites us to reflect on the contradictions of that day, presenting the Capitol not only as a battleground but as a mirror to the nation itself. What do these images reveal about us—and what do they demand we reckon with?

 On January 20, 2017, Nate Gowdy stood at the U.S. Capitol, camera in hand, as Donald J. Trump—with right hand raised and left atop the Lincoln Bible—took the oath of office, vowing to end “American carnage.” It was an ominous prelude to a presidency that would redefine American political expression.

 Four years later, on January 6, 2021, Gowdy returned to Washington, DC, prepared to document Trump’s “Save America” rally at the Ellipse. Instead, he witnessed surreal scenes unfold: militants marching, kneeling in prayer, posing for group photos, breaking for hotdogs, rampaging against the Capitol’s sworn protectors, and leading thousands to defile the Inauguration Day stage.

 This fine art exhibition, WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6th, 2021, examines that day as a theater of chaos and conviction. Gowdy's stark, unflinching images depict the U.S. Capitol, one of democracy’s most sacred symbols, as it becomes a haunting set piece in a dystopian tableau of domestic terror—an inside job.

 Twice assaulted for being deemed "fake news," Gowdy persisted in exposing the truth. Shot on assignment for Rolling Stone, his images transcend traditional photojournalism, revealing the kinetic energy and raw emotions of insurrection: vulnerability, rage, fear, and euphoria. These are not just photographs of an event but intimate portraits of the humanity—and inhumanity—that defined it.

 Through this collection, Gowdy challenges viewers to confront the complexities of identity, power, and the fragility of democratic ideals. WITNESS invites us to reflect on the contradictions of that day, presenting the Capitol not only as a battleground but as a mirror to the nation itself. What do these images reveal about us—and what do they demand we reckon with?

Monday, November 18, 2024

Joe McNally "Faces of Ground Zero" Giant Polaroid Exhibit And Talk At 9/11 Museum

 

Via 9/11 Memorial and Museum

Wednesday, November 20, 2024

Faces of Ground Zero: A Conversation with Joe McNally

6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. ET

Cover of the book "Faces Of Ground Zero" with a  color photograph of a NY Fireman holding his helmet after working at the site of the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center


Award-winning photographer Joe McNally’s "Faces of Ground Zero: Portraits of the Heroes of September 11, 2001" is comprised of 246 large-scale polaroids featuring individuals who responded to 9/11 and contributed to the rescue and recovery operations at Ground Zero. A cross-section of these responder portraits will be on view in the Museum beginning this November. In conversation with Executive Vice President of Collections & Chief Curator Dr. Jan Ramirez, McNally will discuss his undertaking of this project in the emotional weeks following the attacks, how this medium served to uniquely capture this community, and his own experience interacting with those at the heart of this tragedy. 

 This program is presented as a complement to the Museum’s exhibition Faces of Ground Zero. The exhibition will be on view starting late November 2024.


More information and registration here.



color photograph of people viewing exhibit of large Polaroid prints (over 8 feet tall) of rescue workers at Ground Zero after the World Trade Center attack on September 11, 2001
Credit Joe McNally


Saturday, November 16, 2024

Reflections On An Exhibition

 

Grey Villet
Coma and Compassion, Nurse Judy Strickland, New York, 1977



November 17, 2024


Today is the final day for the exhibition "The Best Of Us". 

At the conclusion of every exhibit, we find ourselves discussing our impressions, thoughts, and the feedback we received from gallery visitors and collectors. This time, our reflections are deeply meaningful. 

"The Best Of Us" was an exhibition depicting the ideals and diversity of the human experience; through nearly 50 photographs which explored the characterization of extraordinary and everyday people who renew our faith that all things are possible and exemplify our ideals. People who exemplified the best traits of humanity:  kindness, empathy, compassion, consideration, patience, generosity, resilience, and the willingness to make a difference.

Opening on October 4, as America headed into the final stage of a Presidential election, the images in the exhibit emphasized the necessity of understanding and appreciating photojournalism.

There have been many exhibits that we wish could have run longer, and this another; it will be difficult to see it come to an end. Since the opening on October 4, the exhibit has been seen by many hundreds of viewers: young, old, tours, school groups, veterans, politicians, museum curators, collectors, the "famous", and even a few homeless. We have seen parents quietly explaining the situation behind a photograph to their children, we have seen people softly weeping, and the quiet of the gallery has occasionally been startled by someone gasping "Oh my God!" 

This exhibition has affirmed our steadfast belief in the power of a photograph. The introductory wall text included this quote from Maya Angelou: "Be sure you do not die without having done something wonderful for humanity”. 

We are so grateful for all of the participating photographers, so many of whom we have been privileged to have known know personally. For those who are no longer living with us, we thank their families for preserving their archives. For those still working, we honor your commitment and service to humanity.

 Thank you to all who visited the exhibit and thank you for your kind words and shared emotions. It has been deeply moving to see "The Best Of Us" personified in visitors to the exhibit.


“I cannot tell you where our history is leading us, or through what suffering, or into what era of war or peace. But wherever it is, I know people of good heart will be passing there.” -Carl Mydans, Life photojournalist


View "The Best of Us" and other past exhibits archived here.




Friday, October 18, 2024

Review: "hope and fighting for improvement are central features of The Best of Us "

 Via Pastiempo

The Santa Fe New Mexican

October 18, 2024

black and white photograph of 3 exhausted nurses with their names inscribed on face masks at a nursing station in the Covid ward of Santa Fe's Christus St. Vincent hospital, December, 2020Fe  ho
Gabriela E. Campos
A nursing station in the Frost 19 unit, Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center, Santa Fe, NM, December, 2020

Here's your weekly roundup of some of the must-see, must-do, must-know things that need to be on your radar this week.

PICTURE THIS

‘Best’ Practices

In one image, three masked, exhausted-looking medical professionals slump at a desk, one’s head leaning on another’s shoulder. Two others show American societal matriarchs Rosa Parks and Eleanor Roosevelt — the former serious, the latter smiling. Yet another shows a Black man with “Vote” painted on his face during a march in Selma, Alabama, in 1965.

All are part of The Best of Us, running through mid-November at Monroe Gallery of Photography. The gallery describes the featured images as “depicting the ideals and diversity of the human experience which explore the characterization of extraordinary and everyday people who renew our faith that all things are possible and exemplify our ideals.”

In other words, hope and fighting for improvement are central features of The Best of Us — distinguishing it from some previous Monroe Gallery exhibitions. Photojournalism is the gallery’s bread and butter, and the fruits of that craft can be compelling but challenging.

The Best of Us hangs on the gallery’s walls, while the virtual project The Campaign can be viewed at monroegallery.com/VirtualProjects. It coincides with the election season, ending November 24. Images include a rapturously smiling woman wearing an “Obama, You’re Fired” shirt meeting then-presidential candidate Donald Trump; former President Barack Obama talking and gesturing as rain falls; and former President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney gazing at their watches simultaneously, a painting of Abraham Lincoln behind them. — B.S.


details

9 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays, through November 17

Monroe Gallery of Photography

112 Don Gaspar Avenue

505-992-0800; monroegallery.com

Monday, October 14, 2024

Ed Kashi EXPOSES How Photography Shapes Our View of the World

 Via Planet of One

October 12, 2024





In this insightful interview, award-winning photojournalist and filmmaker Ed Kashi dives deep into his journey from a first-generation American with Iraqi roots to becoming a globally renowned storyteller through photography. He reflects on the pivotal moments that shaped his career, from discovering his passion for photography at Syracuse University to capturing the raw realities of global conflicts and social issues. Kashi shares his thoughts on the challenges of photojournalism, the emotional toll of documenting human suffering, and the importance of empathy in his work. He also discusses his commitment to highlighting the positive stories that often go untold, particularly in underrepresented communities. This conversation is a powerful look into the life of a photographer who has dedicated his career to chasing narratives, both profound and personal.