Christopher James juried the competition. Mr. James accepted 40 images form 40 artists from the 144 artists submitting 706 images. An exhibit catalogue was published with exhibiting photographers receiving three copies and entrants receiving one. The catalogue was sent to photography magazines, curators, museums and photography collector's.
BIOGRAPHY
Christopher James is an internationally known artist and photographer whose paintings and alternative process images have been exhibited in galleries and museums in this country and abroad. His work has been published and shown extensively, including shows in The Museum of Modern Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Eastman House and the Witkin Gallery. His book, The Book of Alternative Photographic Processes (Delmar, 2001) has received unprecedented critical acclaim and was the winner of The Golden Light Technical Book of the Year award.
Mr. James, after 13 years at Harvard University, is currently Professor and Chair of Photography at The Art Institute of Boston at Lesley University. He is also a working graphic designer and a professional scuba diver.
JUROR'S STATEMENT
The creative opportunities of alternative photographic processes have been, until recently, relatively unexplored territory for the contemporary artist. An awakening of the possibilities in this area of photography is rapidly gathering energy as visually creative folk, of all ages, and disciplinary backgrounds, are actively exploring modes of photographic expression that are not solely dependent on commercially packaged materials. These artists are formulating, and hand applying, their own sensitizers, and emulsions, and returning to the exploratory roots of “light-writing.” They are embracing, in this digital age, the inter-disciplinary potential of alternative processes photography; the marriage of nineteenth century handmade craft, science, and romanticism in concert with twenty-first century technologies and conceptual perceptions.
My university and workshop students often ask me for a definition of what exactly an “alternative process” is. For decades, these words were joined at the hip to the term “non-sil
ver” but that description was essentially flawed as silver plays a sensitive role in a significant number of the alternative techniques. I like to define “alternative process” to mean any technique that utilizes light to express the artist’s intention, that incorporates the tools and methods from other disciplines (such as painting and printmaking), and that transports the unique qualities found in the photographic arts into new territory; including digital imaging and Piezography.
Christopher James
January 2003
JUROR'S COMMENTS
Throughout the history of photography, one process has always improved, and replaced, another. From Talbots salted paper, to the latest Piezographic technology, each process has been defined by its own collection of charms, syntax, frustrations, and foibles. As our beloved wet lab process gets in line to meet its inevitable successor, be assured that it will not disappear but simply be adopted, as a personal alternative process of choice, by those artists who can think of no better way to express their vision.
This evolution within the medium was especially evident in the work that I was asked to jury for this competition, the latest in the Texas Photographic Societys great tradition of excellence in photography. Clarke sent 9 trays of slides and asked me to select 40 odd images for the TPS show. No Problem, I thought until I had completed the first tray and already had a list of 30 finalists. Five rounds of projecting, and looking at work with a loop, later I had completed the task Clarke had asked me to and could have easily constructed a great show with twice as many images. To those artists who have been included and to those who were not thank you for the delightful opportunity to acknowledge your work and your vision.
Christopher James
September 2003
The exhibition was shown in the following spaces:
| GALLERIES |
|
|
| CITY |
STATE |
SPACE |
| Amarillo |
Texas |
Southern Light Gallery |
| Longview |
Texas |
Image Gallery |
| Odessa |
Texas |
Options Gallery |
| San Antonio |
Texas |
River City Silver |
| Gainesville |
Florida |
University of North Florida |
