Ron Baxter Smith

Siena Duomo Shadows

2015

An incredibly rich albumen silver print mounted to a two-toned board with a typeset title underneath the image.

This early albumen silver print is titled in ink on the front of the mount. Printed before 1876, when Watkins lost his negatives to a creditor, who sold them to his competitor, Isaia...

This loose albumen silver print is signed and numbered in the negative. Printed c. 1880s.

This early albumen silver print from an imperial plate was printed prior to 1876, when it was included in an album compiled at the Centennial Expositio...

This exquisite, mammoth albumen print of the now-dammed Dalles on the Columbia River is one of Watkins' finest images. This particular print was likely made in the 1880s by Isaiah Ta...

This albumen silver print is signed and numbered in the negative. Printed c. 1880s.

This loose albumen silver print is signed and numbered in the negative. Printed c. 1880s.

This finely framed black and white photograph captures the iconic Eiffel Tower from a unique ground-level perspective, showcasing its grandeur and intricate details in stunning clari...

In his latest show, Benjamin Heller invites us to enter a poetic space of echo and convergence. As a photographer, sculptor, and performer, movement is key in this body of work, that is punctuated by self portraits selected from the series "The Long Walk: Analog Narratives". This series features pieces collected over an extended period of time spent traveling. It is a window to the interior landscapes he seeks to find reflected in the world, to contain a sense of this intimate vastness. All of the images can be viewed as variations on a self-portrait. The places of intimacy and sense of vastness contained in the photographs can convey a sense of transport that enhances the viewer's visual experience. The "echoes" we find in the show reside in multiplicities of human and physical forms, rolling natural curves, and animals in flight; all intended to provide a resonance with the contours of earth, water, and wind. The result is an array of images captivating in themselves, but also given new meaning in the context of Robin Rice's skillful curatorial arrangement. Her intuitive placement creates a graphic narrative for the viewer to follow and decipher, encouraged by the convergence of the poetic titles of the works. Traces of poetry, sculpture, the lines of the body, lived experience are also evoked in Heller's photographs, in movement and action. He also finds inspiration in photographer Duane Michals' framing of expressive narratives, and in Sally Mann's felt sense of powerful physical presence. Photographer Miranda Penn Turin, in reviewing the exhibition, said "I can almost hear a soundtrack, and it's the sound of wind". The invitational image is entitled "Fall," a graceful figure, suspended in a glowing arc, light streaming upwards, eyes closed in rapture. This light sits in contrast to the infinite shadow of the black background, conjuring a certain atmosphere. Heller believes that it is shadows that allow the viewer to reside in the experience – this image does just that. These imagined environments speak to our converging lives and the echoed moments we experience, embodying for each viewer, just what Benjamin Heller connects with while photographing. Another view of self portraiture at the front sign in desk, is an image reading, "and the soul wanted to move," between the keys of a typewriter. This show is a mirror of a desire to move. The black & white images capture simultaneously this movement and stillness, asking us to pause between the natural forces that rise and fall. Heller employs multiple-exposure and a fixed 4x5...

Sally Gall 'Shift,' 2001 Black and white photograph 20 x 24 inches (sheet) 20 x 25 inches (frame) Edition 3 of 20 Signed verso Black wood frame, window opening. 0.25'' face, 1'' dep...