Olafur Eliasson

Bio

• 1967- Born in Copenhagen.
• 1989 - 1995, Studied at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen.
• Lives in Copenhagen and Berlin.
  
• " He has participated in numerous exhibitions worldwide and his work is represented in public and private collections including the Solomon R Guggenheim Museum, New York, The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, the Deste Foundation, Athens and Tate. Recently he has had major solo exhibitions at Kunsthaus Bregenz, Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris and ZKM (Center for Art and Media), Karlsruhe and represented Denmark in the 2003 Venice Biennale."

His Work

• "The basic elements of the weather – water, light, temperature, pressure – are the materials that Olafur Eliasson has used throughout his career. His installations regularly feature elements appropriated from nature – billowing steam replicating a water geyser, glistening rainbows or fog-filled rooms. By introducing ‘natural’ phenomena, such as water, mist or light, into an un specifically cultivated setting, be it a city street or an art gallery, the artist encourages the viewer to reflect upon their understanding and perception of the physical world that surrounds them. This moment of perception, when the viewer pauses to consider what they are experiencing, has been described by Eliasson as ‘seeing yourself sensing’.
  
  Many of Eliasson’s works explore the relationship between the spectator and object. In Your Sun Machine (1997) viewers entered a room which was empty apart from a large circular hole punctured in the roof. Each morning, sunlight streamed into the space through this aperture, at first creating an elliptical, then a circular outline on the walls and floor. The beam of light shifted across the room as the day progressed. The movement of the ‘sun’ across the room was apparently the central focus of the work, but in observing this, the viewer was reminded of his or her own position as an object, located on earth, spinning through space around the real sun.
  
  For The Mediated Motion at the Kunsthaus Bregenz in Austria (2001), Eliasson created a sequence of spaces filled with natural materials including water, fog, earth, wood, fungus and duckweed. During their journey through the exhibition, visitors were confronted by a variety of sensory experiences – sights, smells, and textures – which had been precisely articulated by the artist. Eliasson also modified the dominant orthogonal character of the building, including the insertion of a subtly slanting floor, which made visitors become more conscious of the act of movement through space." -Tate Modern

Website

MoMA

Scott McFarland

Bio

• Born in 1975 in Canada
• Received his Bachelor of Fine Arts, 1997 from the University of British Columbia
• The artist lives and works in Vancouver, Canada.
  
• Recent exhibitions include: 2008 New Works, Monte Clark Gallery, Toronto, Canada; 2008
  Garden of Eden, Statdtische Galerie, Bietigheim-Bissingen, Germany;  2007
  Works on Paper; Monte Clark Gallery, Vancouver and Toronto, Canada Regen Projects, Los Angeles, and Union Gallery, London, England;  2005 Another Photography, Regan Projects, Los Angeles Analyzing Trapping Inspecting, Union Gallery, London, England;  2004 Gardens, Monte Clark Gallery, Vancouver/Toronto, Canada

About the work

• "Scott McFarland's vision has evolved out of a familiarity with the particular environments he photographs. To date he has created several bodies of work exploring such traditional regional subjects as gardens and their maintenance, a friend's cabin and boathouse, as well as the space of photography itself, the darkroom. Regardless of the subject matter, a personal consideration is present in which the artist attempts to reconcile a 'true' notion of the real with the limited one which is captured by the camera lens. McFarland's photographs, which employ subtle digital alteration, return the image as much as possible to its orginal appearance seen by the eye. This alteration includes both exposure and accurate colour correction."
• "McFarland's work thus represents iconic ideas about the local, linking them to the history of photography while using technology as a new way of representation, as a means of accessing the purity of our original experience. Often exhibited as large colour photographs, they have also appeared in magazine works as well as book projects."
  

Scott McFarland

Monte Clark Gallery

Interview

Jeff Wall

Bio

• Canadian artist Jeff Wall was born in Vancouver in 1946. He received his B.A. degree from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver in 1968 and his M.A. degree from the same institution in 1970. From 1970-1973, Wall studied art history at the Courtauld Institute in London. He was an Associate Professor at the Center for the Arts, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver,1976-1987. He received the Hasselblad Award in 2002.
  

About his work

• "His photographs are often carefully staged like a scene in a film, with full control of all details. Their composition is always well thought through, and often borrows from classical painters like Edouard Manet. Many of his images are large (typically 2x2 meters) transparencies placed in back-lit boxes; Wall says he got the idea during a bus trip between Spain and London where he saw large back-lit advertisements at bus stops. The themes are social and political, such as urban violence, racism, poverty, gender and class conflicts.A typical image of Jeff Wall is Mimic from 1982. It is a colour transparency, 198 cm by 229 cm. In it, we see three people, a couple and a man, walking towards the camera on a side walk. The street looks like a suburb in a North American town, residential area mixed with light industry. The couple, to the right in the picture, is white, and the single man to the left is of asian origin. The woman is wearing red shorts and a white top displaying her bellybutton. Her boyfriend (I assume, he's holding her hand) is wearing a denim vest, has a full beard and unkempt hair; they give the impression of working class. The asian man is dressed smarter, with a collared shirt; he gives impression of being middle class. The two men exchange glances. The asian man has his head pointing forward but his eyes look hard left at the couple. The white man has turned his head toward the other man, chin a bit down, looking straight at the Asian, right hand clenched to a fist with the middle extended, pointing to his eye."

Jeff Wall

Vancouver Art Gallery

Interview

Philip-Lorca diCorcia

Biography

1951 Born in Hartford, Connecticut, USA
1975 School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Diploma
1976 School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Post Graduate Certificate
1979 Yale University, New Haven, M.F.A.
*Currently lives and works in New York

Recent Exhibitions

2008 ‘Philip-Lorca diCorcia’, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, California, USA. (solo)
2008 ‘Photographie : détrônera la peinture’, Musée de la photographie, Chalonsur-Saône, France (solo)
2008 Baby. De ideale mens verbeeld 1840- heden, Nederlands Fotomuseum, Rotterdam
2008 diCorcia - Epstein - Shore, Galerie Rodolphe Janssen, Brussels

"diCorcia alternates between informal snapshots and iconic quality staged compositions that often have a baroque theatricality.[2] Using a carefully planned staging, he takes everyday occurrences beyond the realm of banality, trying to inspire in his picture's spectators an awareness of the psychology and emotion contained in real-life situations.[3] His work could be described as documentary photography mixed with the fictional world of cinema and advertising, which creates a powerful link between reality, fantasy and desire.[4" -source: Wikipedia
.. More

Interview

Gagosian Gallery

Edward Burtynsky

Bio/ About his Work

• Born in 1955 of Ukrainian heritage at St. Catharines, Ontario
• Burtynsky is a graduate of Ryerson University (Bachelor of Applied Arts in Photography) and Niagara College (Graphic Art). 
• "He links his early exposure to the sites and images of the General Motors plant in his hometown to the development of his photographic work. Edward Burtynsky's imagery explores the intricate connection between industry and nature; combining the raw elements of mining, quarrying, manufacturing, shipping, oil production and recycling into eloquent, highly expressive visions that find beauty and humanity in the most unlikely of places. 
• In 1985, Burtynsky also founded Toronto Image Works, a darkroom rental facility, custom photo laboratory, digital imaging and new media computer-training centre catering to all levels of Toronto's art community. 
• On the board of directors for Toronto’s international photography festival
• Edward Burtynsky is represented by: Nicholas Metivier Gallery in Toronto, Paul Kuhn Gallery in Calgary, Art 45 in Montreal, Charles Cowles Gallery in New York, Robert Koch Gallery in San Francisco, Flowers East in London, Galeria Toni Tapies in Barcelona and Galerie Stefan Röpke in Köln. His prints are housed in public, corporate and private collections worldwide.
  
• "Celebrated Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky reviewed his 20-year career. His large-scale photographs of sites in the United States, Canada, Italy, Bangladesh, India and China are challenging. While they depict the degradation of nature due to quarrying, mining, railcutting, recycling, oil refining and ship breaking, they convey a sense of awe and beauty thus provoking a new awareness of the landscape of our time."

Website
Koch Gallery

Interview

Jonathon Wells

Bio

• Jonathon wells is both a photographer and geologist.

• Education
  
  Coursework in art, University of Minnesota, St Paul / Minneapolis, MN (2008)
  Artist Professional Toolbox, Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts / Massachusetts, Boston, MA (2006).
  Coursework in visual arts, Mass College of Art and School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA (2003–2005)
  Certificate General Studies in Photography, International Center of Photography, New York, NY (2002).
  Master of Arts Geology, Boston University, Boston, MA (1995).
  Bachelor of Science Earth Science, Cum Laude, University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA (1988).

• 2002 – present: Ongoing work on photography / geologic projects and freelance environmental consulting

About the Work

• "I am continuing to build my existing series while initiating new series at sites around the world where I identify a thought-provoking intersection of land use and underlying geology. I am committed to fostering dialog about human interaction with the earth through my work."- Jonathon Wells
• His statement: 

"My artwork combines views of the land surface and the underlying geologic layers into single digital images. I am trained as both a fine art photographer and as a geologist, which has enabled me to create photomontages with both surface and subsurface views. This unusual perspective offers a different point from which to consider landscape and contemplate a sense of place. I am grappling with the elemental questions: What is the relationship between humans and earth? What kind of relationship exists between our surface world and the earth layers below?

The creation of these photomontages is both an artistic and investigatory process. As a fine art photographer, I find my eye and imagination actively engaged in a specific urban or rural site or space—a New York City block, a gasoline station, a water well site on a wooded hillside. As a geologist, I am intrigued by the underlying geologic framework of that site, by the path of the groundwater flow, by the evidence of the modern world—the utilities, subways, even the pollution—that are marked into the earth.

My artistic process takes months of study and investigation. First, I search for both landscapes and geologic frameworks that intrigue me. I might spend days documenting a city block. To visualize the substrata, I will turn to old and new geologic surveys and maps, to utility maps and geologic field guides. I’ll pull off roadways to photograph rock exposures, follow road workers and underground cable repairs with my camera, waiting for an exposed opening—a “window”—that will allow me to capture a glimpse of what lies below us. Finally, I create the photomontage digitally, combining a documented landscape with the substrata below. In my exploration of both surface and subsurface views of the earth, I hope to offer images that allow viewers an intriguing way to contemplate both landscape and a sense of place. "

Jonathon Wells

South Shore Art Center

Interview

Yeondoo Jung

Bio

• Yeondoo Jung was born in 1969 in Jinju, Korea.  He currently lives and works in Seoul, Korea.
• Education: 1997 University of London, Goldsmiths College, MFA 1995 London Institute, Central Saint Martin College of Art, Diploma in Sculpture 1994 Seoul National University, College of Fine Arts, BFA- sculpture
• 2007 Artist of the Year, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Seoul

About his work

• "Winner of the 2007 Artist of the Year Award by the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Seoul, Korean artist Yeondoo Jung is well respected for his art form. In his Locations series, he approaches his photography in a unique way opting to utilise traditional prop making techniques and scenery construction to create his ideal custom landscapes. A bit of a purist, his landscapes combine natural and artificial elements without any digital manipulation giving his images an awesome nostalgic feel. Amazing work."
  
• "In his Location series, Korean artist Yeondoo Jung utilises traditional prop making techniques and scenery construction to create his ideal custom landscapes."
  
• "Photographs of Yeondoo Jung evoke warmth, presenting positive energy to viewers through simple pleasure and splendor imbued within. Rather than presenting images by putting different subjects together, Jung attempts to represent the relationships brought up amongst the subjects, and sentiments or dreams that are held by them, which becomes the quintessence of his “constructed photography.”
  Therefore, Jung’s photos can be distinguished from those of Jeff Wall that revive the pictorial structure into the context of modern life or those of Pierre & Gilles that create spectacular fantasy with impersonation of Cleopatra or naval forces. Especially, the works of the latter hold their signature character that lives in the artificial paradise, so called “Pierre & Gilles Land,” which emanates unique radiance."

Tina Kim Gallery

Yeondoo Jung Website

Interview

Robert and Shana ParkeHarrison

Bio

• 
  RPH Born in 1968 Fort Leonard Wood, MO 1964
  SPH Borin in Tulsa, OK 1964
  
  They currently reside in Massachusetts
  
  


• RPH 1994 University of New Mexico, M. F. A.
  1990 kansas City Art Institute, B.F.A.
  SPH 1991-94 Graduate Studies, University of New Mexico
  1986 William Woods College, B.F.A.
  


• (In 2001, after many years of an evolving collaboration, the ParkeHarrisons began to
  exhibit their work recognizing both Robert and Shana as creators.)
  

Their Work

• "Much has been written about Robert & Shana ParkeHarrison, the husband and wife team whose photographic tableaus took the art world by storm more than six years ago. Creating a genre unique within the photo world, the ParkeHarrisons construct fantasies in the guise of environmental performances for their Everyman – a man dressed in a black suit and starched white shirt – who interacts with the earths landscape. Tapping into their surreal imagination, the artists combine elaborate sets (which can take months to construct) and an impeccable sense of wit and irony, to address issues about the earth and mankind's responsibility to heal the damage he has done to its landscape." -Edelman Gallery

Jack Shainman Gallery

Artist Website

Interview

Gregory Crewdson

Bio

• Born in Brooklyn, New York, on September 26, 1962.
  
• At sixteen, he played in a band called the Speedies, whose first single was titled "Let Me Take Your Foto."
•  In 1985, he received a B.A. from the State University of New York at Purchase, where he studied photography with Jan Groover and Laurie Simmons. He graduated with an M.F.A. in photography from Yale University in 1988.
  
• For his thesis project, he took photographic portraits of residents of the area around Lee, Massachusetts, where his family had a cabin.
  

His Work

• "It was also in Lee that Crewdson conceived of his later Natural Wonder series (1992–97), in which birds, insects, and mutilated body parts are presented in surreal yet mundane domestic settings. Photographs from Natural Wonder were shown in the 1991 exhibition Pleasures and Terrors in Domestic Comfort at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. In his next series, Hover (1995�97), Crewdson turned away from brightly colored close-ups to black-and-white bird's-eye views of strange situations (a man covering a street with sod, a bear gawked at by onlookers as it rummages through garbage) set in the streets and backyards of Lee. His Twilight series (1998–2001) introduced color and an enlarged scale—50 x 60 inches—to this surreal formula, resulting in decidedly cinematic images reminiscent of the films of Steven Spielberg. These recent photographs have become increasingly spectacular and complex to produce, requiring dozens of assistants, Hollywood-style lighting, and specially crafted stage sets. Crewdson plans to direct a feature film in the future."

Website

Gagosian Gallery

Elizabeth Carmel

Bio

• California based photographer
• Specializes in unique, expressive landscapes and waterscapes, combined with dramatic imagery, vivid colors- "artistic touches to create new, captivating visions of the natural world."
• "Ms. Carmel has spent years exploring and photographing the diverse landscapes of the world.  Her award winning images are in numerous galleries and private collections throughout the US, and were recently selected for display at the Nevada Museum of Art.  In recognition of her fine art photography and technical expertise, Elizabeth is one of 12 photographers worldwide honored with the Hasselblad Master Photographer award for 2006."

Interview

Gallery

Website

Lynn Geesaman

Bio

• Born in Cleveland in 1938
• Originally studying physics at Wellesley College, she was introduced to photography.
• Interest in travel and gardens lead her to travel to England, France, Belgium, Italy and Germany.
• Received the Minnesota State Arts Board Fellowship and the Arts Midwest/NEA Regional Visual Arts Fellowship Award 
• Geesaman's monograph, Poetics of Place, was published by Umbrage Editions in 1998.
  

Her Work

• "Lynn Geesaman's images of elaborate topiary gardens, canals, and dramatic landscapes employ unusual diffusion techniques that emphasize an imaginative and psychological interpretation of nature."- Robert Koch Gallery
  
• "Her shimmering images continue to invite the viewer into a dream world where the imagination runs free."-Robert Koch Gallery
• "Throughout here career, Geesaman has been preoccupied with one primary subject - the classical garden or cultivated landscape. For her, these places represent a human desire to find, amid the chaos of the environment, a reasoned order and a mathematical beauty of natural form. Building upon this approach, she turns her garden views into romanticized settings with a nostalgic look to the past. Well versed in the history of photography, her work reflects the early fascination of turn-of-the-century pictorialist views of the mysteries of nature. The contemplative sentiment that pervades Geesaman's work is gretly due to a sophisticated printing technique. The use of a greenish-sepia toned paper supports her romantic vision. In addition, she filters the negative during enlargement, achieving an image of softened detail and blurred appearance. This is also a direct reference to a Pictorial sensibility." [Therese Mulligan, 12/1999]
  

Thomas Barry Gallery

*no formal artist website

Interview

Beate Gütschow

Biography

• Beate Gutschow was born in Mainz, Germany, 1970
• Studied at the School of the Fine Arts, Oslo- as well as the School of the Fine Arts, Hamburg, Germany
• "She has appeared in one-person and group shows throughout Europe and recently had her first show in the US at the Museum of Contemporary Photography, Columbia College Chicago, and at Danziger Projects.
• Recieved the 2006 Ars Viva Prize, an Otto-Dix Prize of New Media, and a Villa Aurora fellowship.
• Lives and works in Berlin, represented by Danziger Projects in New York, Barbara Gross Galerie in Munich, and Produzentengalerie in Hamburg

Her Work

• The work "compels the viewer to think about humankind's celebration of nature and our ceaseless desire to control it."
• digitally produced photographs with high attention to detail, she uses an archive of images specifically to create seamless collages
• "The landscapes (series LS) are constructed to convey the "perfect" pastoral scene.  In stark contrast, the cityscapes (series S) present an eerily familiar vision of a nonexistant but clearly dystopian form of architecture.  Although the two series present seemingly tranquil settings that at first appear as binary opposites, in fact, they are equally fraught with issues of control, inauthenticity, and the pursuit of perfection."

Barbara Gross Gallery

Interview 

* no formal artist website available