Lambrecht's Lichtenstein
A terrifically exciting component of any photo festival, aside from the portfolio reviews, is the range of exhibits you'll see. One of my favorites this year at Fotofest was Laurie Lambrecht's project, Inside Roy Lichtenstein's Studio, from her days as Lichtenstein's assistant.
Laurie worked in Lichtenstein's studio in the early 1990s, assisting in the daily routine, and occasionally making photographs. About the experience:
One of my greatest joys was that Roy appreciated the photos I was taking. He liked the way I used the elements from his work in my compositions. His work was so often art about art and my photos were reflecting, revisiting and honoring his art. I remember exactly the day I photographed "Roy in Yellow interior". It was a very pleasant morning in Southampton. He arrived in the studio a few minutes after me. After greeting each other he said " today would be a good day to photograph". Stepping on the step stool with paint brush in hand, he started to fine tune the nearly finished painting. As I was often fortunate to do, I quietly observed Lichtenstein at work with Hasselblad from across the studio.
As you know, I'm charged by pictures that reflect experience, and that create experience. Roy in Red Interior has it all. Standing there I felt lost inside it; the painter and the picture merged — scale shifted; time stopped; history overtook me: I felt a whisper as it rushed past.
About the work of inspiration, Laurie says:
As a creative person it was beyond inspirational to observe his ways as a model of discipline. To see how he organized his work space, cataloged his references, and budgeted his time was impressive. To observe his graciousness as he worked with people was remarkable. He had noticeable respect for the integrity of others. More than once Roy commented that success in one’s career had to do with being in the right place at the right time. He believed that many people had talent and worked hard but some had luck, too. I can't think of anyone who didn't want to collaborate with Lichtenstein!
Another aspect of Laurie's project that I find inspirational is this idea of collaboration. Lichtenstein is one of the 20th century's most important visual artists and Laurie helps us see why: he worked at it. Again and again we hear this story about the people we admire and respect — luck and temperament are critical ingredients, but so is the willingness to be disciplined, to endure, and to just keep working. (Sound familiar..."keep your camera with you"...?)
Laurie made these pictures in the early 1990s. Lichtenstein died in 1997. After all these years the project is finally seeing an audience. About this process of gestation Laurie has said that it took time for the project to become what it is today, partly because of a need for distance, and partly because of today's printing technology (pigment inks on rag papers), which allows her to see the pictures in way that feels consistent with her experience of paint and materials in Lichtenstein's studio.
In so many ways, this project has it all. Look for Laurie's book with this work in the coming year. In the meantime, you can catch the exhibit at these locations:
Houston:
Bank of America Center
700 Louisiana St
Feb.22 through May 30th
San Francisco:
Cordon Potts Gallery
49 Geary St.
March 30 - May 15, 2010
Portland, Oregon:
Blue Sky Gallery
122 Northwest 8th Ave.
July, 2010
Griffin Museum of Photography
67 Shore Rd.
Winchester, MA
November 18 – January 10, 2011, Opening Nov 18
Victoria Munroe Fine Art
161 Newbury St.
Boston, MA
November, 2010
Learn more about Roy Lichtenstein at the foundation website, and here.
Learn more about Laurie Lambrecht's Lichtenstein project in this Lensculture article, and on her website (and be sure to check out her project Lake Trees).
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