Museum Response: Both Sides of the Camera

A week late, but still good. I just went down to Portland to see the Judith Glickman Collection and was amazed by the number of pieces, the range of photographers, and the organization of the show. I did at times feel a bit overwhelmed by the amount of images and the titles of the categories could have been more clear. Part of me wanted there to be a distinct start and end point to each collection, mostly because there were times when the pieces obviously didn't flow. That made the show a bit inconsistent. Other than that I was pretty content being in that gallery space.

The "Classics" and "Inside and Out" struck me the most. Obviously distinguished images like "The Migrant Mother" and Paul Strand's pieces don't easily get old, but it was intriguing to examine photographs by big names from the early 20th century and then a few minutes later stare at works by up and coming artists.

To now violate one of our big class rules, I'm going to go ahead and say that I really liked the "Inside Out" collection because so many of the images were cool. Seriously though, it is pretty difficult to not immediately fall in love with Morell's "Camera Obscura Image of a Pine Tree in Bedroom" or Scott Peterman's ice fishing cabins. The Peterman ice house and Morell's "Camera Obscura" are images with differing, but still perfect (in my opinion) compositions. Having an exterior image of the woods appear in a run-of-the-mill bedroom is pretty unique, but Morell's choice to use this particular room with the largest tree resting on the bed was important. There is quite a bit going on in the photograph, but he chooses placement wisely, obsessively even. The ice house series, which I further investigated with the help of Google Images, is essentially, in my opinion, a documentary. He has gone to these remote locations and recorded a hobby, but also a life style, that is generally thought of as off the beaten path. Still, his framing of the cabins and decision to zoom out relates to the remoteness of these fishing villages.

The show as a whole promotes a fresh way of thinking about photographs. For me, the breakdown into subtopics was unique. I tend to organize my own images by subject matter or in order of the date they were taken. I have mostly only even really seen photos in exhibits that are organized in the same, generic way. Note to self: organizing images according to common themes is a possibility that should not be overlooked.