A note from the photographer

Dear fellow artists:

First I would like to thank you all for all your time and effort in creating the outstanding works that are exhibited in this show. Your fresh ideas and new concepts are always a welcome sight. More often than not, local artist groups are fraught with old ideas and stale content. Not so with your work! Bravo!

I took the photographs of this show with a little bit of an agenda in mind.  As an "old man" of  fifty five years of age I can see that my work is getting a bit stale too. So in shooting this show I decided to go back in time a little bit. You may have noticed that the flash equipment I was using was rather big and clunky. I had that great big flash head on a handle and that "purse" thing slung over my shoulder. What you don't know is that the flash unit that I took your pictures with was over 50 years old! The Stroboflash was invented by a newspaper photographer for the Milwaukee Press Journal in the late 1940's and became the standard issue photoflash for every press photographer in the USA until the 1970's. The reason I chose that flash is because it creates a distinctive look that modern flash units cannot duplicate. I grew up in the world of black and white photography. In high school my yearbook had no color photographs -- everything was black and white. Newspapers did not print much color until the 70s'. Even many fine art catalogs were in black and white until the 60s' So I decided to make you guys a part of an experiment.

As modern day artists, most of you live in world of color. Modern technology has given us an unlimited palette of vibrant colors and an unlimited selection of mediums to work with. But it wasn't always that way -- especially in photography. So what I have decided to do here is present all the photographs of the Next Generation show as a photographer in 1958 might have shot it. Look at yourselves as your grandfather would have appeared in the "Old Generation" art show of 1958. I have done all the photos in 1950's Black and White. Now don't panic! Through 21st century technology I am also providing you the same photos in color but please look at the black and white ones first.

Look at the photographs of yourselves and your art work with the eye of an artist. Clear your mind of color. Pay special attention to the subtle differences in tonal values where before there was color.  Think in terms of brightness and contrast. Feel the texture. Notice how uncluttered the images seem to be. Where a bright color may have drawn in your eye in one place, a bright  high contrast area may now draw you some where else.  Many times detail that is drowning in a sea of color now leaps from the canvas. Of course some images look better in color -- but some are just stellar in black and white -- you decide. There is no correct answer, this is art!  Look back in time so that you can see the future.  Most of all enjoy my photographs and enjoy what you do. Live and breathe your work and the rest will take care of itself.

Albert

Old Generation Art Show of "1958"

stroboflash@atlantic.net

Please see some of my other event photos here:

http://www.stroboflash.com/events

See my portfolio here:

http://www.stroboflash.com/byAlbert

Thanks!