Gallery Event

(Amy Montali)


Thursday I attended the gallery event in Cushing-Martin with work by Ri Anderson, Thomas Gustainis, and Amy Montali. I really liked all of the photos. The colored ones were so eye catching and the black and white photos seemed so mysterious.


It was interesting listening to the artists talk about their work since I have never really been to an event like that before. Ri Anderson said he was very specific about the way he shot his photos. He wanted to be in complete control and everything was planned out in advance. Amy Montali on the otherhand did things very spontaneously. One picture of hers that I specifically liked was a picture of a woman handing a radish to an older man. Amy talked specifically about this photo, comparing her style of picture taking to balloon animals- this was her giraffe balloon animal. Pretty cool. She said she is very interested in fertility and the way she shot the radish photo was from an angle that emphasized the womans curves.


She has a background in film which is why her pictures look like they are part of a larger story. They seem like snapshots taken out of a movie. The models are people she knows but she is not attempting to reveal anything about their lives. Since she is friends with her models it is a very social process for her which I also found really interesting.


Again, Ri had a very different approach and his shoots were very formal. He knows the models he shoots also, some better than others. Everything he shoots is deliberate but made to look spontaneous. He explained that one simple hand gesture can mean terror or pleasure, with no other information given except that body part.


I really enjoyed these photos and the insight into them, I look forward to more events in the future.