The exhibition View Find at Page Bond Gallery is a beautiful collection of photographs proudly showing a large variety of subject matter and presentation. Page Bond explains that she “wanted to mount a show that would be welcoming to many different kinds of people, and have a variety of images so that we could meet people where they are. Some people seem to like very abstract work and other people want to see something representational, something that is recognizable. So we have a little bit of everything. We have also have been working very hard to have various types of photography, from photograms to digital photos, and works that are not traditional. That was also part of the exhibition’s mission: to show a variety of different processes.”
When you walk into the gallery, the first pair of photos that you see are by Michael Lease, an artist living and working in Richmond. Bond wanted his photos to be seen first because Lease’s work is “multi-layered and very interesting.” She says they are “strong pieces to introduce people to when they walk into the gallery. They are very recognizable and I thought they were very strong images.”
The two photos of Lease’s work are digital photos of trees. They are part of an ongoing series called “For the Lack of Words.” Lease explains that they are different from his previous work shown. “These pictures are very private and they are much more for myself," he says. "I feel ultimately these will do the same thing as my collaborative, public pieces, but on a more intimate, private level. I want people to feel a personal attachment to them.”
His photos take into consideration the distance of time and how more important these images become the longer the time has been between viewing them and creating them. He also thinks of relationships when it comes to his work, “I’m interesting in the people that plant the trees, the trees as a part of the city, how we all relate to these trees. How Virginia is covered in crape myrtles, and how our relationship is to crape myrtles.”
Lease comments on the aesthetics, saying that his beautifully crafted and well presented images are “like a portrait of the tree.”
In addition to Lease’s trees, Bond wants to also bring light to the work of Michael Kolster’s unique ambrotype. It is a photo of tree on glass backed by velvet--another beautiful photo in this exhibit full of cohesive variety.
View Find includes work by Virginia Beahan, Kimberly Burgess, Stacy Evans, Elijah Gowin, Emmet Gowin, John Grant, David Halliday, Cynthia Henebry, Thurston Howes, Michael Kolster, Rick Levinson, Sally Mann, Glen McClure, Amanda Means, Hullihen Moore, Holly Morrison, Ansel Olson, Pamela Pecchio, Alyssa Salomon, Lee Saloutos, Gordon Stettinius, Jeremy Witt, Willi Anne Write, William Wyle, and Dave Woody.
The exhibition ends on February 23. More information on the exhibit can be found on http://www.pagebondgallery.com. More information about Michael Lease can be found at http://michaellease.com.