Robert von Sternberg & R. Dean Larson
January 11 - March 1, 2014
Black & White Vintage Photographs
Robert von Sternberg, Palisades Park, Santa Monica,
1975, silver gelatin print, 8 x 6.25 inches
HydroGraphics
R. Dean Larson, HydroGraphic 94 (L) and Sketch 94 (R),
2013, digital inkjet print, sizes vary
Robert von Sternberg & R. Dean Larson
dnj Gallery is pleased to
announce its first new exhibitions of 2014. Black & White Vintage Photographs by Robert von Sternberg will be in the
main gallery. Gallery II will feature HydroGraphics by R. Dean Larson. Both exhibitions
will run from January 11 through March 1, 2014.
Robert von Sternberg has been active in Southern California
photography for several decades. This exhibition highlights samples of his
black and white work spanning from 1962 through the early 2000s. All of
the images in this exhibition were captured on traditional film. Some are
classic gelatin silver prints. Others are carbon ink prints that were
created by drum scanning negatives into digital files, then printing them with
an ink jet printer retooled with special carbon ink jets to produce an
extraordinary range of tonal qualities. Though the photographs cover a range of
subjects, together they showcase von Sternberg’s talent for finding and
capturing the exquisite, yet easily overlooked moments of everyday life. Using
humor and wit, von Sternberg’s images ultimately lead his audience to the discovery
that in a world saturated with images there is still a reason to look. von
Sternberg states, “Images exist—waiting to be captured. Subliminally, I’m always
looking for them. I encounter them everywhere—on my commute, while attending
events and even while traveling.”
von Sternberg started taking
photographs in his early years in Hermosa Beach and sold the very first image
he took to Surfer Magazine. He has exhibited his work since the late sixties
and has pieces in numerous private collections and 45 museums, including the
Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Art
Institute of Chicago and the International Museum of Photography at the George Eastman
House in Rochester, New York. von Sternberg’s work is currently on view at
LACMA as part of the exhibition “See the Light – Photography, Perception, Cognition:
The Marjorie and Leonard Vernon Collection.”
In HydroGraphics in Gallery II, R. Dean Larson uses digital tools to explore and
extend his artistic vision beyond the capture of a frame. Larson, who taught traditional
photography and darkroom technique for many years, turns to the newer tools of
digital photography and Photoshop to emphasize the distinctive characteristics
of ocean waves. This exhibition features photographs of subjects both before
and after manipulation to demonstrate the differences between the captured
image and Larson’s artistic vision. Drawing upon psychology’s concept of
Selective Perception, he explains that he manipulates his images of the ocean
in order to “isolate[ ] certain Elements of Design, such as Form, Color and
Contour, and create[ ] a hybrid image of enhanced and virtual reality…In my Hydrographics
series, I have set out to visually illustrate aspects of the ocean’s water.” Larson
taught photography in the Los Angeles Unified School District for over 30
years. His photographs have been exhibited throughout the Southern California
area, and his work has been published in numerous outlets. He holds a B.A. and
M.A. in psychology, a subject that influences much of his work.
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santa monica, california 90404
310.315.3551
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