Pittsburgh Blogger Co-curates NY Show

Readers of this blog may remember this post about the scientist, photographer and blogger, Joerg Colberg who happens to live in Pittsburgh. Joerg has one of the most read blogs following contemporary photography out there. Joerg is Co-curating a show with the NY photo dealer Jen Bekman, (who of course also has a great blog ) called "A New American Portrait".

"A New American Portrait features photographs by Christine Collins, Jen Davis, Benjamin Donaldson, Amy Elkins, Peter Haakon Thompson, Todd Hido, Alec Soth, Brian Ulrich, and Shen Wei. Their portraits, environmental, posed, and self-portraits among them, express the wide range of practice in modern American portraiture. Mr. Colberg observes: “A portrait lives in the interaction between the photographer and the sitter, a relationship which banishes any notion of objectivity. The work included in this exhibition explores, and at times exposes, this fragile intriguing dynamic.

These photographs illustrate the inherent contradictions in contemporary portraiture, as seen from a distinctly American point of view. While they appear to be "honest" representations, some revealing and confessional, in truth the subjects exist within narratives and environments carefully constructed by the photographers. Gallery director Jen Bekman comments, “Alec Soth's Bonnie smiles sweetly while holding her photograph of an angel, serene in her faith, having just shared a Bible passage with Soth condemning people to hell for their sins. Soth's presence, however, remains as it does in all his work: compassionate rather than condescending. In an untitled portrait from Ulrich's Thrift series, a young girl assumes a Classical pose amid the glare and chaos of a shopping mall. Hido's portraits are suffused with sadness and sexuality, ripe with a mysterious narrative. Davis's self-portraits brutally confront our abiding obsessions with thinness and desirability. The eighteen portraits in this exhibition explore potent themes and emotions which shape contemporary America: sexuality, gender, desire, heroism, consumption, fear, class, hope and loneliness are all in the mix.”

jen bekman, located at 6 Spring Street between Elizabeth and Bowery, New York.
Jen Bekman will host an opening reception for the artist on Friday, June 22, from 6:00 – 8:00pm at the gallery.

A Stranger In Pittsburgh

People who have been following this blog, have no doubt noticed my interest in the increasingly self selecting and global nature of identity. My post's on the Pittsburgh diaspora; City of the mind and on Paper Rad; all touch on that theme. So, anyway not that long after my gallery opened I met a person in Pittsburgh who is a great example of this. His name is Jeorg Colberg and he is an astrophysicist in Pittsburgh and also a photographer. Since, 2002, he has had a blog on contemporary photography, that is one of the more known sources for dope on current work. His special focus is current German and European photography and what is more facinating is that to a great extent his knowledge comes from what he can see and keep up with online. Here are some quotes from his profile.

Conscientious is a weblog about photography, art, and life in general. Predominantly, you will find contemporary photography, but I am not going to try to define what future or past posts will or did contain other than saying that it's photography or art that I like(d) or stuff that I was/am interested in. I am no professional photography critic, and I do not aspire to be one; hence there will be no long words. I think good photography doesn't need making too many words.
Photography has become an art form - with all the advantages and disadvantages that has for photographers. Conscientious usually ignores most aspects of the world of art. There are links to world famous photographers, whose work you can find in "important" museums, and there are links to virtually unknown photographers, many of who will never have a chance to display their work. There are also occasional samples of my own work. What all this means is that these photos are photos that I like. If you want to deduce any other statement from it that's your personal decision"

The extent of his knowledge and the obscurity of some of the work he digs up reveals a level of obsession. This is obviously someone living in two worlds.