Photography: Then and Now
Artist discussions focus on the imagery of life and death in Southern art and photography, and how 19th-century processes are applied to 21st-century photography
The process of photography—from the creative beginnings to final print—will be explored in two artists’ discussions at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art.
On Sun. Dec. 14, “Life and Death in Southern Art: From 19th-century Artists to Sally Mann,” will feature artist William Dunlap and Ogden Curator David Houston. They will discuss the evolution of how life and death have been portrayed in Southern art. Nineteenth-century still-life paintings of animals by George Louis Viavant, Marie-Paoline Casbergue Coulon, Achille Peretti and John James Audubon, as well as photographs from contemporary photographer Sally Mann’s current show at the Ogden, “What Remains,” reflect how art and science can merge into a work of beauty, or controversy. A gallery walk-through of the Mann exhibition, with commentary from Dunlap and Houston, will be part of the program.
On Wed. Dec. 17, “Revealing the Process: 19th-century Photographic Techniques in 21st-Century Photography,” Ogden curator David Houston, photographer and Ogden preparator Richard McCabe, and as well as a special guest will examine how contemporary photographers are exploring 19th-century photography processes and updating them for the 21st century. Many of Sally Mann’s images for “What Remains,” are created by a wet-plate collodian process, one that was used before, during and after the Civil War and Reconstruction. Mann also uses a 19th-century view camera—similar to one used by Civil War photographer Matthew Brady—with hand-ground, uncoated lenses. This, as well as other processes will be discussed.
What/When:
1) Sun. Dec. 14: “Life and Death in Southern Art: From 19th-century Artists to Sally Mann,”
2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
2) Weds. Dec. 17: “Revealing the Process: 19th-century Photographic Techniques in
21st-Century Photography,” 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Admission: Free to members; nonmembers: Free with museum admission ($10)
[Photo Alliance members receive a $2 discount!]
Where: Ogden Museum of Southern Art, 925 Camp St., 539-9600