Aline Smithson
Portraits in Contemporary Photography 2014
Selections from a Series: Revisiting Beauty
“Revisiting Beauty” is a series of portraits inspired by paintings of the twentieth century. This work is part of a larger project that examines connections of color, landscape, pose, and object as a way to reconsider the formal expression of the photographic portrait and give a nod to classic painterly sensibilites.
Over the last decade, photography has turned away from the ideal of beausty, as it has turned away from the wet darkroom and the idea of crafting a singular artistic print. In reaction to Eggleston’s influence on a generation of photographers, I wanted to create a body of work that was formal and beautiful, capturing girls between the ages of 14-17 on the cusp of womanhood and not fully understanding their own beauty. The models are shot against a colorful backdrop and then I add in a landscape that I have shot, either in China or California. The result is a feminization of the landscape and a more painterly approach to creating photographs.
Over the last decade, photography has turned away from the ideal of beausty, as it has turned away from the wet darkroom and the idea of crafting a singular artistic print. In reaction to Eggleston’s influence on a generation of photographers, I wanted to create a body of work that was formal and beautiful, capturing girls between the ages of 14-17 on the cusp of womanhood and not fully understanding their own beauty. The models are shot against a colorful backdrop and then I add in a landscape that I have shot, either in China or California. The result is a feminization of the landscape and a more painterly approach to creating photographs.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
After a career as a New York Fashion Editor and working along side the greats of fashion photography, Aline Smithson discovered the family Rolleiflex and never looked back. Now represented by galleries in the U.S. and Europe and published throughout the world, Aline continues to create her award-winning photography with humor, compassion, and a 50-year-old camera.
She has exhibited widely including solo shows at the Griffin Museum of Photography, the Center of Fine Art Photography, the Fort Collins Museum of Contemporary Art, the Lishui Festival in China, the Tagomago Gallery in Barcelona and Paris, and the Wallspace Gallery in Seattle and Santa Barbara. In addition, her work is held in a number of museum collections. Her photographs have been featured in publications including PDN (cover), the PDN Photo Annual, Communication Arts Photo Annual, Eyemazing, Soura, Visura, Fraction, Artworks, Lenswork Extended, Shots, Pozytyw, and Silvershotz magazines.
After a career as a New York Fashion Editor and working along side the greats of fashion photography, Aline Smithson discovered the family Rolleiflex and never looked back. Now represented by galleries in the U.S. and Europe and published throughout the world, Aline continues to create her award-winning photography with humor, compassion, and a 50-year-old camera.
She has exhibited widely including solo shows at the Griffin Museum of Photography, the Center of Fine Art Photography, the Fort Collins Museum of Contemporary Art, the Lishui Festival in China, the Tagomago Gallery in Barcelona and Paris, and the Wallspace Gallery in Seattle and Santa Barbara. In addition, her work is held in a number of museum collections. Her photographs have been featured in publications including PDN (cover), the PDN Photo Annual, Communication Arts Photo Annual, Eyemazing, Soura, Visura, Fraction, Artworks, Lenswork Extended, Shots, Pozytyw, and Silvershotz magazines.
In 2012, Aline received the Rising Star Award through the Griffin Museum of Photography for her contributions to the photographic community. She also was awarded Honorable Mention for Excellence in Teaching through CENTER for 2012. Aline founded and writes the blogzine, Lenscratch, that celebrates a different contemporary photographer each day and offers opportunity for exhibition. She has been the Gallery Editor for Light Leaks Magazine, is a contributing writer for Diffusion, Too Much Chocolate, Lucida, and F Stop Magazines, has written book reviews for photoeye, and has provided the forwards for artist’s books by Tom Chambers, Flash Forward 12, Robert Rutoed, amongst others.
Aline has curated and juried exhibitions for a number of galleries, organizations, and on-line magazines. She was an overall juror in 2012 for Review Santa Fe, a juror for Critical Mass from 2009-2013, and a reviewer at many photo festivals across the United States. Though she was nominated for The Excellence in Photographic Teaching Award from 2008- 2012 and was nominated for The Santa Fe Prize in Photography in 2009 by Center, she considers her children her greatest achievement. Aline is also a founding member of the Six Shooters collective.
Aline has curated and juried exhibitions for a number of galleries, organizations, and on-line magazines. She was an overall juror in 2012 for Review Santa Fe, a juror for Critical Mass from 2009-2013, and a reviewer at many photo festivals across the United States. Though she was nominated for The Excellence in Photographic Teaching Award from 2008- 2012 and was nominated for The Santa Fe Prize in Photography in 2009 by Center, she considers her children her greatest achievement. Aline is also a founding member of the Six Shooters collective.
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Jacklyn in Blue 14" x 14" Unframed 16" x 16" Framed Archival Pigment Print Unframed $1,200 | Framed $1,500 |
Please contact Drift Gallery at 603-379-6560 to inquire about availability.
