The International Photography Hall of Fame and Museum, located at 3415 Olive St. in Grand Center Arts District, opened in October 2013. When Executive Director John Nagel was looking for a new location after the Kirkpatrick Center in Oklahoma City limited the photography museum's exhibits, he visited with Grand Center head Vince Schoemehl and found a large second-story space above the Triumph Grill. The first exhibition in the new location was titled "The Past, Present and Future of Nature Photography."
Enter CWEnder and friend Ellen Curlee, above, curator of IPHF's current exhibition, Portrait/Process. Ellen knows a thing or two – or three – about photography, having run a successful photography gallery in downtown St. Louis until 2008.
Ellen has done a stellar job gathering photographs from collectors and photographers, both local and from afar for Portrait/Process. Here's how she describes the exhibition: "From people watching to storytelling, Portrait/Process appeals to the voyeur in all of us while exploring various genres of photographic portraits." In less formal terms, Ellen explained that she wanted to showcase as many photographic processes as possible in this exhibition.
Ellen is photographed in front of a series of dramatic images by St. Louisan Mark Katzman, who uses an old process, ambrotypes, to create contemporary photographs.
Conceptual Photography, which is more about ideas than the subjects, has been around since the 1960s. Photographer Kimiko Yoshida's self portrait, left, is "part of her 'Marry Me' series, a quest for her identity as an uprooted Japanese woman."
World-renowned photographer Cindy Sherman, whose photographs are shown far right, influenced a group of later photographers including Heather Bennett, a graduate of Washington University whose self-portraits are shown below.
Bennett uses "self portraiture to expose the ludicrous fantasies foisted upon women consumers."
Another local photographer, Emily Stremming, cut photographs of her mother and herself apart and wove them together to create new portraits showing her mother vertically and herself horizontally, left. Stremming's self portrait in color, right, was created using the same process.
New York photographer Brian Riley takes iPhone "selfies" (above) he layers in the camera.
Environmental Portraits show the subjects' environment and clothing, which enhances an understanding of who they are. Local photographer Patti Gabriel has several photographs in Portrait/Process which were taken while she was visiting a weaving community in India.
Other Environmental Portraits on view include William Claxton's photograph of Lena Horne and Chet Baker. This photograph, above, and those by Herman Leonard, below, are from the collection of Jazz at the Bistro, represented by Jeff Appel.
Herman Leonard's portraits are "a unique record of the jazz scene of the 1940's, 50's and 60's. Quincy Jones said of Herman Leonard, 'I used to tell cats that Herman Leonard did with his camera what we did with our instruments.' "
And finally, a series of Elvis impersonators are shown alongside air-brushed Hollywood "hand outs" of Elvis Presley (not photographed).
St. Louis collector and antiques dealer Rick Ege, whose handsome, eclectic shop is located in Soulard, loaned the International Photography Hall of Fame & Museum a large collection of daguerreotypes, not photographed, for Portrait/Process.
Thanks to Ellen Curlee for the fascinating tour of the exhibition, and to Elsa Hart for the very informative press release which I've quoted throughout this post.
Portrait/Process at IPHF, 3415 Olive Street, until September 28. Hours are Weds & Thurs. 11 to 6, Fri., Sat., Sun., 11 to 4, closed Mon. & Tues. Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for seniors & students, children under 18 and IPHF members have free admission. Don't miss it!