Something Old, Something New

Group Photography Exhibit

Suliman Abdullah · Lynda Andrews-Barry · Gary Anthes · Iwan Bagus · Lisa Battle · Judy Bonderman · Bob Burgess · Amity Chan · Suzanne Goldberg · Leslie Kiefer ·
Jo Levine · Beverly Logan · Steven Marks · Susan Raines · Langley Spurlock ·

Curated by Martina Sestakova
Wednesday, October 30th through Saturday, November 23rd, 2024

This show features photographic art created by members of the Studio Gallery. The theme challenged gallery members to try out new ideas. Artists took diverse approaches to the theme, such as using photo software to alter reality; switching to a different color palette or to black-and-white; choosing subjects new to them; creating photo collages; or combining digital technology with traditional media.

However, language and art can be open to many interpretations. In this case, some members interpreted the theme to encompass photographic subjects that were themselves old or new (or both), such as colorful weathered sandstone, or old roots and new leaves.

Suliman Abdullah

This photograph captures the delicate interplay between decay and renewal. Old roots metaphorically turn to stone while new leaves emerge from the earth. Inspired by the concept of petrification, where plants transform into stone over millions of years, it reflects the timeless cycles of nature. By studying this image, I was drawn to explore how organic matter transitions into lasting forms, echoing the idea that this work, too, may survive the ages.

Lynda Andrews-Barry

I recently have been exploring themes of mortality through the use of a saturated color palette. These intense hues push the boundaries of my artistic comfort zone, transforming decay into a vivid, surreal experience.

Gary Anthes

It's the sort of place I rarely go, for photography or any other reason.

Iwan Bagus

War may be as old as humanity, death and the displacement of innocent millions an
inescapable reality. Representing new hope, change and transformation, a
kaleidoscope of butterflies and dragonflies appears, invisible.
The U.N. Universal Declaration of Human Rights, article 25, states that “Everyone has
the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of
his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care….”.

Lisa Battle

This collection of photographs celebrates the patterns of weathered sandstone at Zion National Park. Although my preferred approach to photography is to capture a close-up, intimate view of lines, textures, and colors as abstract images, for this show I am including something new—a landscape photograph, showing the expansive canyon with its series of hidden pools and pine- and juniper-clad slopes.

Judy Bonderman

My impressionistic take on the glorious reds of the season differs markedly from both my traditional street photography and my recent abstract expressionism. This series is a fantasy of haute couture foliage illustrating “Autumn” by Emily Dickinson.
. . .
“The maple wears a gayer scarf,
The field a scarlet gown.
Lest I should be old fashioned,
I’ll put a trinket on.”

Bob Burgess

After years of being moved by color, I have found an interest in its absence. These black-and-white images represent older and very recent encounters with light and shadow.

Amity Chan

The “Coexistence” series offers viewers a fresh perspective on the 2019 Hong Kong protests. The paired photographs capture moments that reveal both the city’s unrest and its underlying tranquility. Alongside the urgent issues of human rights abuses and police brutality, these images also showcase glimpses of everyday calmness and resilience—such as street art and protest messages created by demonstrators, and historical architecture that has witnessed the city’s evolution.

Suzanne Goldberg

These works were created using a photo I took and tore up arranging  the resulting fragments around a canvas.  Then i followed the rhythms of the pieces to create a very different work.

Leslie Kiefer

As a photographer, I focus on the transitions between life and death, growth and withering; the eternal cycle of life. While these depictions were initially made with new technologies, i.e. a digital camera and processing, I wanted to enhance the sense of time passing by altering the final image through an old technology: Hand Gilding. Each completed image is hand gilded using very thin sheets of 24 carat gold leaf and then sealed to protect the print over time. My hope is that the richness of the gold color draws the viewer into the picture in a new way. 

Jo Levine

My photographs are usually straightforward depictions of what I saw. I played (literally!) with Photoshop to distort (Hallucination), add texture (Reverie), or create a composite image (Lotus Fantasia).

Beverly Logan

This is a new way of working for me. I’m using photos I took on a project on consumerism in photomontages to tell new stories in a pop art style

Steven Marks

I am a city boy who has always thought photographic truth was only possible in urban settings. Now I’ve seen the Light. Best of all, none of my new subjects ever screams,“Why are you taking my picture?”

Susan Raines

The photographs in this show are different from my usual photographs in that they are documentary shots of objects that I found on a trip to Abita Springs, Louisiana.  They are kind of weird and funny and I couldn’t resist pointing my iPhone at them and taking the photos

Langley Spurlock

The image is a collage composed of several photos taken during walks in the streets of South Florida. At the time, I became interested in the graphic possibilities of graffiti on various buildings and sidewalks. I was interested in exploring, in particular, how these randomly applied tags might appear if they were applied to the interesting textures of walls and doors elsewhere. The collages in this series are composed therefore of tags and textures which I photographed separately and then manipulated and arranged, not as they were, but as they could have been. They are artifacts created from old images made new by combination with each other.