ASPHALT: Expressionist Photo Exhibit by Ellie Perla

This is the latest exhibit taking place at my gallery in the Wynwood Art District on June 9th, 2012.  It features spectacular new work by the amazing matriarch of our clan - Ellie  Perla!  Many of her photographs helped to guide scenes in Gibbin House and spur on the stagnating grey cells when imagination took the day off:)  Her beautiful photographs of Romania and Vienna are sprinkled throughout this blog, but if you find yourself in the Miami area the weekend of June 9th, please do check out her work in person!

ASPHALT: The Expressionist Photography Series by Ellie Perla

Launching at ATELIER 1022

      

Ellie Perla’s ‘ASPHALT’ series showcases a unique visual technique that superimposes translucent layers of urban and nature images from recent photographs taken in New York and Washington DC over portraits from the artist’s own archives.  Combined, the images are intended to evoke the idea of simultaneous thought, of how the mind can be both in the past and present, while also engaged in wishful thinking.  Ellie Perla’s photographs communicate this through expressionist compositions that are at once fractured and harmonious, abstract and organic, ethereal and concrete. The kinetic and emotional images form a nostalgic and deeply personal narrative that takes the viewer along the artists’ geographic and creative journey.  The ‘ASPHALT’ series derives its name from the texture of asphalt, which is the one constant in Ellie Perla’s continuous moving through cities and their surroundings.

Ellie Perla - ASPHALT Series

On her inspiration for this latest project, Ellie Perla says: “Sometimes we remember people's faces when looking into nature's intricate patterns. The portraits in this collection are memories that came to me and stirred my imagination while strolling through Central Park.  I liked the idea of showing transition, from the visual to the psychological, by blending ‘fleeting’ snapshots from a compact point-and-shoot camera with portraits that carry a lot of personal significance.”

Ellie Perla (b. 1957) studied animal husbandry at the Polytechnic University of Timisoara, Romania, and holds a degree from the New York Institute of Photography.  Her photographs have appeared in such renowned international publications as National Geographic Traveler Español, Vanidades, Cosas, Expansion, Glamour Español, Quien, El Comercio, and O Estado de Sao Paulo.  She also wrote a monthly Miami arts and travel column for the Mexican women’s magazine Kena. Most recently, she participated in the charitable project Art Platform (UK) with her acrylic canvas piece Iluminada. The piece was also featured in the project’s poetry and art publication ‘Inspiration Speaks’.  Ellie Perla currently lives in Miami Beach, Florida, and is a resident artist at ATELIER 1022 Gallery in the Wynwood Arts District.

My Latest Curation: Solo Show for Carlos Rodriguez-Feo at ATELIER 1022

ATELIER 1022 Gallery and Carlos Rodriguez-Feo Present

BEYOND THE VISUAL SPECTRUM: Explorations in Alternative Photography

ATELIER 1022 Studio and Fine Art Gallery is pleased to announce ‘BEYOND THE VISUAL SPECTRUM: Explorations in Alternative Photography’ – the first solo exhibit of resident artist Carlos Rodriguez-Feo, opening May 12^th, 2012, 6-10 PM. 

The photographic works and accompanying rare camera collection featured in ‘BEYOND THE VISUAL SPECTRUM’ form a comprehensive expression of Carlos Rodriguez-Feo’s mantra - ‘Rescuing Photographic Sensibilities’.  The Cuban-born artist accomplishes this by taking the South Florida landscape and its landmarks on a journey through alternative processes that combine modern technology with vintage tools and techniques.  The organic nature and iconic vocabulary of Rodriguez-Feo’s subjects help them function as visual ‘controls’ by which he showcases infrared photography, silver gelatin photography, hybrid silver gelatin and digital processing, instant image transfers, and pinhole photography.   The conversation between old and new, natural light and the invisible spectrum ‘drawn’ out, is carried further with Carlos Rodriguez-Feo’s extensive collection of rare and antique cameras, used in creating the images in the exhibit, and on display to the public exclusively for the opening.

Says Carlos Rodriguez-Feo on the driving force behind his work, “I see us advancing so rapidly into the 21st Century…I want to retain the sensibilities and innocence of the 19th Century, when our (photographic) art was born, but not at the cost of ignoring the present.  By merging those vintage tools and pioneer techniques with the latest technology, I hope to create a new artistic vision that hints at what is to come.” 

Carlos Rodriguez-Feo holds doctorate and post doctorate degrees in dental and maxillofacial surgery from Georgetown University.  He perfected his dark room skills while conducting electron microscopy research there.  As a resident artist at ATELIER 1022 Gallery in Wynwood, he has conducted workshops on Advanced Techniques in Photography and 3-D Photography.  His work has been featured nationally on the ABC primetime drama ‘Charlie’s Angels’.  He currently lives in Miami Beach, FL. 

The opening night of ‘BEYOND THE VISUAL SPECTRUM: Explorations in Alternative Photography’ coincides with the Wynwood Art Walk for the month of May.  The exhibit will also be on view for the 2^nd May date of the newly launched Wynwood Studio Walk – 5-9 PM, May 24^th, 2012 (www.facebook.com/WynwoodStudioWalk).