Archive for the ‘photography’ tag

Charles Williams – 193 + LOT

Charles Williams, a native of Blue Diamond, Kentucky, created a vast body of work that included photography, comics, paintings, sculptures and an environmental installation and home that he referred to as Silo #3. Institute 193 and Land of Tomorrow are pleased to present the first comprehensive solo-exhibition of the late Williams’ work. This multi-venue approach will provide the viewer with an overall presentation of the artist…‘s work and will feature pieces spanning the entirety of his career. Land of Tomorrow will house larger, environmental works while Institute 193 will focus on the artist’s more intimate creations. Williams, a mercurial character who escapes easy definition, had an untold influence on the local art community that will finally be illuminated by this exhibition.

“I got me this place here and decided to do something with it. I have always had art on my mind and wanted to do something out front there that I hadn’t heard of no other person doing. I fixed up the trees to give them some new life, some color, one idea got another idea and so on down the line, each idea kept building into another idea.”

-Phillip March Jones, Creative Director

CHARLES WILLIAMS
SILO #3
OPENING RECEPTION: 7 October 2010
6 – 8 PM: Institute 193, 8- 10 PM: Land of Tomorrow

Shaffer @ Latitude: One Nail Gallery

Travis Shaffer spoke to artists at Latitude this afternoon about his recent project, Eleven Mega Churches. According to the artist, “This work is interested in issues of access and diversity; land-use, suburban infrastructure, the automobile and it’s environmental impact; and the formation of isolated communal brands. It seeks to coax its audience into open dialogue about the impact of the church as a building and an institution upon our world, along with differences between its implied and actual purposes and responsibilities. As one views these works, gathered using stitched Google Satellite imagery, there is an obvious repetition of sprawling parking lots, coupled with cul-de-sac laden homogeneous housing developments and swimming pools, all icons of a distinctly American and more distinctly middle class ex-urban/suburban landscape.”

One Nail Gallery at Latitude’s studio space on Saunier Street in Lexington aims to create a dialogue amongst regional contemporary artists and the artists at Latitude. Exhibiting artists will give a short talk and spend a day at Latitude. The exchange will hopefully impact the work of everyone involved creating a deliberate bridge between Latitude Artist Community and the regional art community .

Guy Mendes: 40/40 on KICKSTARTER

Institute 193 and Guy Mendes would like to publish 40/40: Forty Years, Forty Portraits, a book that functions as a “studio tour” with Mendes. The book will trace Mendes’ career through portraits taken over the last four decades. Each photo is complimented by a written passage about the subject being photographed. Wendell Berry has agreed to write an introduction for the book which will be available November 1, 2010. The book is being accompanied by an exhibition opening at Institute 193 in Lexington, Kentucky on December 2. The money raised through Kickstarter will be used to print the book and get a signed copy of it into your hands! This will be the first book published about Mendes’ work in over 20 years.

Charlie’s Photo Album + Silo #3

Institute 193 and Land of Tomorrow are announcing a multi-venue collaborative show featuring works by the late Charles Williams. The show entitled Silo #3 will feature sculpture, comics, photos, collage and installation works. LOT will feature large scale works and pieces from Charlie’s yard while the Institute will focus on small-scale works and archival materials. Williams, a native of Blue Diamond, Kentucky, spent most of his life living and working in Lexington. This is is the first comprehensive solo-exhibition of William’s work. His work was featured in a major survey of African-American Vernacular Art, Soul’s Grown Deep, at the Michael C. Carlos Museum at Emory University in 1996 as part of the cultural olympiad. The show and accompanying catalog featured a large number of complex sculptures by Williams.

Institute 193 and LOT will be publishing a book entitled Charlie’s Photo Album that will feature selections from the vast collection of photos that Williams took during his life. A large portion of this material is kept by the Kentucky Folk Art Center. Stay tuned. The show is scheduled to open on October 7, 2010.

Guy Mendes – 40/40 Book Announced

Institute 193 is announcing a public collaboration with Carly Goes To Space and Guy Mendes to publish 40/40 – Forty Years, Forty Portraits. The book – still in its preliminary design stage – will feature portraits taken by Mendes over the last forty years and passages written by Mendes explaining his relationship to the various characters. Among the photographed are: Ashley Judd, Wendell Berry, Ben Sollee, Lil’ Enis, Sister Gertrude Morgan, etc… The book is scheduled to be released late this fall. Stay tuned for more details. The project will be primarily funded through KICKSTARTER, and we will be sending out updates periodically. We are posting working images of the book’s cover and layout. Let us know what you think.

The book will be accompanied by an exhibition at Institute 193 produced in conjunction with the Ann Tower Gallery.

Guy Mendes and Thornton Dial Sr.

This short video shows Guy Mendes photographing the artist, Thornton Dial outside of his studio in Bessemer, Alabama. Mendes is a photographer who has collaborated with Institute 193 on several projects. He is from New Orleans but has lived in Lexington for over 40 years. The Institute is planning a book and major exhibition of Mendes’ portraits in conjunction with the Ann Tower Gallery later this year. The resulting photos from the day are shown below: