Diane Amato-Images from France and Italy (Points of View Photography Gallery through April 25)
First, a disclaimer. Diane Amato is my excellent friend. We have known each other for years and have collaborated in many ways. Together we've worked, made photography and cooked suppers. Countless times we've laughed until we cried and cried until we've laughed. I am not sure if it is possible to view a close friend's artwork without bias.
But when it comes to talking about good art, what is so valuable about an unbiased perspective? Either you get excited about what you're looking at or you don't. Besides, the fact is that Diane Amato is a top notch photographer, something I knew long before making her acquaintance. I loved her photography before we even met.
Traveling through France and Italy provide rich subject matter for an artist. In general, Diane brings a fresh eye for the familiar. Her images purposefully stay away from the cliche. A study of Amato's photographs make clear her enthusiasm for recording an authentically personal experience. She seeks the quiet ordinary and recognizes it as extraordinary. In "Walking Home," an aproned woman ambles down a cobbled stone street underneath lines of laundry hung to dry; the freshly washed linens appear to be snapping to attention in tribute to the woman walking below. "Roofs" is a study of pattern; traditional Parisian eaves are layered like playing cards set on end. They are presented from a point of view that accentuates angles and diagonal lines. A closer look reveals satellite dishes perched here and there among the old coal burning chimneys. In "Window and Bird," a bird rests on the ledge underneath a window; the bird's rounded silhouette mimics that of the window's arch and accentuates its size. It is no accident that Diane chooses to include a cross that hangs above the partnered bird and window. The cross is a thoughtful element in the architecture that does not escape Amato's notice. Without the inclusion of that cross, this would be a different, far less successful photograph.
Diane has a chair fetish. This is evident in three photographs that are exhibited together, "Luxemborg Chair," "St. Sulpice Chairs," and "Chair Shadows." Amato gives tender attention to empty chairs with seductive results. Chairs are for rest and contemplation; Amato's chairs are ready to serve. Mysteriously, Diane is able to capture the personality of the chairs. It is impossible to look at these chairs and not think about who has sat in them and hear the collective echoes of each thought, prayer, wish and conversation had by those who sat there. Now they sit empty waiting for you to take part in the ongoing exchange.
amato understands shadows and uses them with alacrity. She allows them to inhabit space without apology; she controls the extent to which a shadow is important in hercomposition. When Diane chooses to use shadows to emphasize angles and seen shapes, this lends a movement to her photography that invites sound or reverberation. But she corrals the ghostlike quality of shadows equally well which gives a quiet meditation to other photographs.
My favorite image in the exhibition is "Shrine." It is a photograph taken in an alley in Venice. A shrine takes center stage; it is as tall and narrow as a totem pole almost stretching the frame's full height. The shrine's painted saint portrait appears to be gazing downward in delight, about to grasp a large bouquet of fresh flowers that anchors the shrine's base. On the left side of the photograph, a woman walks away from us carrying a full shopping bag. A stone wall banks the right side of the image. Without being corny or contrived, this photograph reminds us that we are surrounded by small visual treasures in our everyday lives that are nothing less than holy. It is a solid example of Amato's signature manner of effectively capturing the ubiquitous vocabulary of juxtapositions: old and new, history and present,motion and stillness.
Points of View Photography is a clean, bright space. It is a perfect venue for photography. The large front windows offer plenty of natural light to pour generously over the prints on display. Amato has a high standard when it comes to duplicating her images by pigment print - her white tones are crisp and the blacks own tone and richness. Amato has made the deliberate intelligent choice to present these photographs in black and white. This makes the photographs timeless and calls attention to shadows, architecture and patterns.
The prints are affordably priced. And if you see a red dot next to a print that you'd like to buy, do not be discouraged. Remember that it is possible to buy duplicate prints of an image from most photogrphy shows. Because Amato's exhibited prints range in size, don't be shy to inquire about having your favorite images printed in a size that is not on display.
-Lisa Morten
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