New work by Laurie Sand and Colleen Henderson, Two Visitors, Italia 2010, is currently on view through June 5. Please join Laurie and Colleen at the gallery for their reception on April 17, 4-6pm.
I set out to photograph Italians in their thoughtful moments. I found the mysterious suited man ambling to work before sunrise, the purposeful nun hustling from an appointment near San Marco Plaza in Venice, and the young Florentine artist practicing her technique on the streets for small change.
Because there are so many visitors with cameras disrupting daily living, Italians have earned the right to invade our perceived photographic space. Without ill intention they consistently and obliviously walk right through the moment of capturing an image.
In this way, a young boy stopped right in the middle of a frame to savor the smells from a trattoria and became my picture. Just a few minutes later a diminutive woman bent on going somewhere hurried straight through another frame. I do not really know exactly what their intentions where because I never asked them. My perceptions are just a visitor’s imagined reality.
Traveling to Italy in the fall of 2010 was for the pure pleasure of photography with a group of friends. This trip of a mere three weeks included Venice, Florence and parts of Tuscany. Hundreds of images were taken. Because we were visitors for only a short period of time, looking at Italy with such rich culture and storied history, choosing which images to exhibit was difficult.
Fortunately, included in our group was Colleen Henderson, a long-time friend, teacher and accomplished colleague. We have our own interests and styles but through this exhibit, together, we became Two Visitors.
Since my first visit during college, Italy has always captivated me. Initially it was the art - the quality as well as the sheer quantity, but over time it came to include the people, the language, the food, the scenery, the ambiance: everything about Italy charmed me.
Over the years I was fortunate to make several trips, but by early 2010 I realized it had been over a decade since my last visit, and I was itching to go. And, not incidentally, over that same time period I'd gone from being an amateur "shutterbug", to a full time, fine art photographer and instructor. I was anxious to translate my feelings about Italy into fine art photographs.
And so the planning began. In September of 2010, ten good friends, (8 of whom happened to be photographers), would depart for a three week Italian odyssey: 6 days in Venice, 12 days in Tuscany, and a final 4 days in Florence. Itineraries were mapped, reservations made, and expectations were set.
Most photographers are fond of early morning light, and I am no exception. My personal plan was simple: rise early, grab my camera, take a walk, and see what gifts were offered. A passage in Anne Morrow Lindbergh's book, Gift from the Sea, was my guide during these walks:
"The sea does not reward those who are too anxious, too greedy, or too impatient. To dig for treasures shows not only impatience and greed, but lack of faith. Patience, patience, patience, is what the sea teaches. Patience and faith. One should lie empty, open, choiceless as a beach — waiting for a gift from the sea."And so I would walk and look, wander and observe, patiently waiting with only one goal: try to be ready when the gifts are offered.
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