FotoWeek DC at Multiple Exposures Gallery: Technique Demonstrations

Planning your FotoWeek DC schedule? Mark November 10th as a night to visit the Torpedo Factory Arts Center in Old Town Alexandria for demonstrations of two fantastic alternative photography processes by members of Multiple Exposures Gallery (MEG). 

Danny Conant and Colleen Henderson kick things off on November 10th at 7:15 in the Target Gallery with image transfers using DASS Super Sauce. At 8:15, the action moves upstairs to MEG's space on the third floor where Sandy LeBrun-Evans and Louise Noakes will give a lesson on image transfers using Purell hand sanitizer.

While your calendars are out, mark one more date. On November 17th at 7:30 p.m., join MEG member Janet Matthews at Multiple Exposures Gallery for a demonstration of making cyanotypes, a 19th century process that's still used today to make unique photographic prints.

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Demonstration Schedule: 
          November 10
                 Image Transfers Using DASS Super Sauce
                 7:15 pm, Target Gallery at the Torpedo Factory, Alexandria, VA
                Image Transfers Using Purell Hand Sanitizer
                8:15 pm, MEG, Studio 312, Torpedo Factory, Alexandria, VA
         November 17
                19th Century Processes: Making Cyanotypes
                7:30 pm, MEG, Studio 312, Torpedo Factory, Alexandria, VA

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Demonstration Descriptions:

Image Transfers using DASS Super Sauce

Using DASS Super Sauce solution, Danny Conant and Colleen Henderson will demonstrate how, using your own digital photo files, you can easily and simply make unique image transfers onto an assortment of receptor surfaces, including artist papers, wood panels, and a specialty paper called "DASS Stone Paper."

DASS stone paper (made from limestone and resin) allows you to create image transfer effects that are very similar to the Polaroid emulsions transfers which were popular prior to the demise of Polaroid film products.  

 

Image Transfers Using Purell Hand Sanitizer

Learn how to transfer your images onto beautiful printmaking papers and fabrics. You won't believe what a little hand sanitizer can do to produce this very unique visual effect.

19th Century Processes: Making Cyanotypes

The cyanotype process, also known as the blueprint process, was one of the early methods used to make photographic images. It was invented in 1842 by astronomer John Herschel in an attempt to create a method for copying his notes.

Cyanotype printing is one of the easiest and safest ways to make photographs by hand. Just a few ingredients, paper, two chemicals, ultraviolet light (such as the sun) and water, are needed to create unique photographic prints. We will demonstrate the process and look at some contemporary approaches used with this historic process.

"Forgotten": Q&A With Sandy LeBrun-Evans

 MEG member Sandy LeBrun-Evans talks about, “Forgotten,” her new exhibit at Multiple Exposures Gallery:

“Forgotten,” features images from two abandoned Utah towns, Thompson Springs and Cisco. Why did you photograph them? I have always been fascinated by abandoned/lost things, places and towns. I saw some photos of Thompson Springs and knew I had to photograph it. I checked to see if there were other ghost towns in the area and I found Cisco.

Are these towns truly abandoned or do some people still reside in them? Cisco was truly abandoned; Thompson Springs still has a small population – 39 people in the 2010 Census.

Thompson Springs started as a station stop on the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad in the late 1800’s. Later it thrived as crucial railhead for nearby coal mines, but it fell on hard times when mining declined, I-70 was built just two miles to the south and the passenger train station was relocated to another Utah town.

Cisco was also once an old Western Railroad watering stop and its demise came with the end of the steam engine. It survived into the 20th century long enough to acquire a zip code, but not much else. Today, vandals have damaged most of the town and its relics. They also seem to use it for target practice -- while photographing, I picked up at least 20 discharged gun casings.

Is it true Cisco was once a filming location for the movie Thelma & Louise? I’m obviously not the only one that finds that town haunting. Cisco was the backdrop for a number of scenes in Thelma & Louise.

What was your biggest challenge when photographing the towns? Going through places where I knew life existed and not feeling as if I were trespassing. Of course, I was also hoping I wasn’t disturbing any animals -- four-legged or two-legged!

Several of your most popular images in the series contain graffiti that add humor and humanize otherwise desolate scenes. Did you pick up on that when you were shooting or did that come to you when you saw the images later? I definitely picked up on the writing when photographing and I made sure they were part of the images.

This isn't the first series you've done featuring gritty scenes of abandonment (your Eastern State Penitentiary series leaps to mind). What draws you to them? I think it’s the loneliness of the images and the leftovers of a life once lived.

What’s next for you? I am working on some mixed media projects and there are some more abandoned/forgotten places that I hope to photograph soon.

“Forgotten,” Through October 2, 2011 at Multiple Exposures Gallery at the Torpedo Factory Arts Center, Alexandria, VA. Sandy LeBrun Evans: http://tinyurl.com/3wze7qp

New Exhibit - Eric Johnson and Sandy Lebrun-Evans

Off Season - Eric Johnson
Forgotten - Sandy Lebrun-Evans
Exhibition Dates: August 2 - October 3, 2011Opening Reception: Sunday, August 7, 2011  3-5pm

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Upcoming Exhibit - Eric Johnson and Sandy Lebrun-Evans

Opening next month - new work by Eric Johnson and Sandy Lebrun Evans: August 2 -October 3. Opening reception will be held on Sunday August 7, from 3-5pm.

Additions to the MEG family

Multiple Exposures Gallery is pleased to announce the additions of new member Eric Johnson and new associate member Sandy LeBrun-Evans to our gallery:

Washington, D.C.-based photographer Eric T. Johnson has had a long interest in photography, starting with documentary work for student publications in high school, through which he developed skills in shooting and processing traditional black and white photographs. While his academic background and career are based in the sciences, photography has continued to provide him with an outlet for his creative interests, and his affinity for black and white photography has endured through his recent transition to digital imaging.

Eric T. Johnson

Sandy LeBrun-Evans is a fine art photographer who began her photography journey in 1990 with the study of black/white and infrared films. She has since explored digital and alternative processes, including encaustic medium, when presenting her work.

She misses the hands-on nature of the wet darkroom and seeks out digital and alternative techniques that allow her to more actively participate in the art making process. Currently Sandy is creating a series of images using a variety if substrates.

Sandy LeBrun-Evans