Phoenix Art Museum Exhibit Review

(All images included were taken from a brochure courtesy of the Phoenix Art Museum and the InFocus Organization

http://www.phxart.org/portraits/
http://www.infocus-phxart.org/

I recently went to the Phoenix Art Museum to peruse the “Inspired Vision” exhibit featuring two famous photographers, Brett Weston & Sonya Noskowiak.  These two artists created the breadth of their work in California during the 30’s and 40’s with many similarities. Both were inspired by photographer Edward Weston and took part in the 1932 Group f/64 exhibit which became key to establishing their footholds in photography, yet both had two distinctly different styles and upbringings.  Sonya was born in Leipzig, Germany but quickly moved on to the Johan Hagemeyer Photographic studio where she fell in love with Edward Weston and became a secret mother to his sons.  Brett was one of Weston’s sons prior to the arrival of Sonya, and fit into his father’s footsteps with ease.  It wasn’t long however, before Brett and Sonya began branching off into an experimental dichotomy of styles.

Of course both of these artists only took black and white photos with old vintage cameras like the 11×14” Rollei, but beyond that there are stark differences.  Brett is far more concerned with the textures and contrasting shapes of the world around him, while Sonya intensely studies the personalities of people.  For example, in Brett’s “Japan, 1970” he uses the high contrast of a silhouetted landscape to create lines of movement.  The viewer is led in on the left by the swirling texture of a raw tree trunk, then the eyes travel across smooth undisturbed waters with precise vertical lines that eventually lead up to a road emerging and leading the viewer to nowhere.  He also takes far more close-up images then Sonya, such as “Untitled, 1926” where we can see, again, a dark silhouetted bottom leading us in as the varied rough, smooth, and spotted textures lead us up the plant stalks.  Brett is a master “leader” in this way, even his portraits bring the character’s body, clothing, and the background into play as Brett leads the viewer around the patterns of the photo before the viewer wonders who these people are, if  even caring at all.

In Sonya’s photos the context of her character’s plays a tiny role when compared to their character.  She was a renowned portrait photographer, and it becomes obvious when looking at the thousands of images she took.  She has no interest in making her subjects “pretty” or conveying a deluded sense of self-grandeur as many portraits intend.  In fact, most of her subjects are not even looking in the camera, and the ones that do, are doing so with defiant stares, asking the viewer to question who these people are.  Each person’s face is the focal point of the image put into sharp focus.  A perfect example is “Helen Forbes, 1937” who wears a lush kimono-esque blouse or dress that even in black and white we can tell is bright and beautiful.  Yet Helen’s face tells a different story as she stares intently off camera with a scowl, her care-worn expression foiling her vibrant blouse as her frayed graying hair blends into the dark background.  This is obviously a woman of wealth and defiance, but where has life taken her through to get there?  She seems lost in a distant memory, or perhaps wondering about her ever-thinning future, or maybe she is staring down someone or something that fills her with dread.  Whatever the case may be, you the viewer are left to decide why Sonya wants us to delve into her portrait’s thoughts.

Now I know it seems odd that I’d be writing about photographers since I am an illustrator/designer, but believe it or not, I also love photography and writing.  Stop on by again some time and I will post some photographs I’ve taken and see what you think!  Don’t forget to COMMENT!