Opening reception:
Friday, June 1 | 7:30 pm
Humans have been undergoing some humbling changes lately. We used to think we were made in God’s image and this human-like God of course favored us. “He” therefore granted us “Dominion” over all beasts of the field, birds in the air, and fish in the seas. This was very convenient for us. We felt we were uniquely advanced over all other creatures – we could think, reason, use tools, communicate. Alas much of these “unique” attributes are now found to be shared by birds, bees, apes, and even trees who turn out to have very sophisticated ways of communicating with each other.
Still Life has a very long heritage. For much of that time the subjects of the work have generally been considered basically inanimate. Masters of the form who I have admired – Edward Weston and Paul Caponigro in photography, Chardin, Picasso, Morandi and Cezanne in painting, saw more in the ordinary “lowly” objects before them and hence the strength and originality of their visions.
I hope to show the powerful life and vitality contained in these “Still Lifes”- that there is still life in these objects – even when dead. Death too is a living process. At death the microorganisms that make up a major portion of all living things begin a very active involvement consuming that of which they were a major part.
My still lives have one eye pointed at the past masters and one eye pointed in a contemporary direction that reflects our increasing awakening to the power and vitality that exists in the fruit, vegetables, plants and creatures that surround and sustain us all.
Eric Weiner has been an imagemaker for over 40 years. Beginning in still photography on the streets of New York in the late ‘60’s, his work has been praised by photography legends like Robert Frank and Andre Kertesz. During his time in New York he met some of the seminal photographers of our time including Eugene Smith, Roman Vishniac, and Ernst Haas. He’s worked as an artist in film, video, craft, mixed media, design and theatre. His work has been published in prominent magazines, and he has received awards in design, crafts, photography and art. His primary art is using the digital camera for an intense interrogation of the world of appearances and reality. Recent corporate purchases have been by Lexogest Inc. and IFAM Holdings. His work is held in collections from New York to New Zealand.
Any singular merit I may have as an artist lies in initiating an organic process and then letting it unfold in a natural unhindered way. We hold more knowledge than we gain from our brief life spans and limited cultural experiences. We are the outcome of one billion years of evolution. If we let things come through us unimpeded, we can tap larger domains revealing new (and ancient) realms.
I generally work without much preconception. I sometimes feel like a weak man dragged along by a powerful dog. The work takes me where it wants to go. When we arrive I usually like what I find. I hope you do too.