Photo for thegazz.com by Douglas Imbrogno

If you get out much in Charleston, you are going to recognize many of the faces on the wall at “Face Value,” a new photo exhibit by Charleston artist Mark Wolfe. Above is Charleston artist Keeley Steele and co-proprietor of the Bluegrass Kitchen in Charleston’s East End. Many others faces may be unfamiliar, but all are worth a look, a gaze and a ponder. Having all other identifying details shorn away — background, clothing, any other color but black, white or gray — is a singularly focusing feature of these works. And not everyone smiles or even has open eyes. It’s an intriguing, absorbing show.

The exhibit is up through Oct. 19 at the University of Charleston’s Frankenberger Gallery, in Geary Student Union. The gallery is open 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Photo for thegazz.com by Douglas Imbrogno

You may have seen these buskers busking in front of the downtown Charleston library and Ellen’s Gourmet Ice Cream Shoppe. They stopped off the street and up into UC’s Frankenberger Gallery at the invitation of “Face Value” artist Mark Wolfe. Their names are Winsome and Adrian DeQuiros and they are quite contemporary buskers — they’ve a Myspace site, after all. Watch for an upcoming gazzTV appearance by the duo. Winsome, by the way, tells gazz that Charleston is one of their fave cities in which to busk. Other cities hassle them, while Charleston’s finest “look out for us.” Nice.

Photo for thegazz.com by Douglas Imbrogno

“Face Value: New Works by Artist Mark Wolfe,” opened Tuesday night, Sept. 26, with a reception at the University of Charleston’s Frankenberger Gallery (2nd floor of Geary Student Union). The show, up through Oct. 19, features very high-contrast, close-up photos of more than 40 area residents (plus one of the artist’s pug-nosed dog). The face at far left above is Gordon Simmons, who works with the W.Va. Division of Culture and History. Simmons was overheard to remark at the reception: “After I saw my photo, I told Mark: ‘Give me my soul back!’”

Related article: Q-and-A with the artist.

Here is an excerpt of a longer review of the Clay Center photo exhibit “In Response to Place,” up through Nov. 5. To read the whole review, click here. “Bay,” The image above is William Wegman’s “dogscape” of one of his famous Weimaraners.

By Rebecca Burch
For the Gazette

‘I don’t go looking for twisty and sprawling images, but I find them. I guess it suits my personality. When there’s not much water available, plants will fight to grow and all hell breaks loose. I like that.” – Lee Friedlander

The quote above is the perfect metaphor for the “In Response to Place,” photo exhibit at the Clay Center. The artists featured captured images from the Nature Conservancy’s “Last Great Places” list - a list of natural places threatened by development, pollution, and urban sprawl. Like Friedlander’s plants, these places are fighting to exist, and these artists have captured their struggle with stunning results.

Some of the them, like Annie Liebovitz, William Wegman, and Sally Mann, are best known for their portraiture. A fan might be surprised to see their names in an exhibit of landscape photos. In fact, their photos of nature take on an almost portrait-like quality. Liebovitz’s “Pitch Pines and Gray Birch” shows a grouping of almost human-looking, light-colored birch trees against the dark, velvety backdrop of pitch pines.

Fans of Wegman will be happy to see his famous Weimaraners in his landscapes. But instead of his typical anthropomorphic portraits of dogs in human poses, the dogs become part of the landscape itself. In “Bay,” you see only the dog’s back, forming a concave sort of “dogscape” against the background of a portion of Cobscook Bay, Maine.

Read on…

“The Sunrise Carriage Trail” (acrylic 38″ X 38″) by Kemp Littlepage McElwee

Charleston artist Kemp Littlepage McElwee opens a new exhibit of 30 acrylic works this Friday (Sept. 29) at Roger Lucas Gallery in Charleston. The image she chose for a card announcing the show should be a familiar one to fans of the Carriage Trail, which starts behind the city’s CSX railway station and climbs up to Sunrise mansion in the South Hills. “I picked this painting to be my card because there has been a resurgence of interest in the trail,” McElwee says. “People have worked hard to fix it up and make it more a part of Charleston. I’m hoping with this card that more people will remember that it is there for everyone and all of Charleston. It’s a beautiful walk.”

IF YOU GO: New works by Kemp Littlepage McElwee. Opening reception Friday (Sept. 29) from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., at Roger Lucas Gallery, 1031 Quarrier St. Charleston, WV. Call 344-2787.

IF YOU GO: “Face Value: New Work by Artist Mark Wolfe” opens with a reception from 5:30 - 7:30 pm, Tuesday (Sept. 26), and runs through Oct. 19 at the Frankenberger Art Gallery, University of Charleston, 2300 MacCorckle Avenue, SE.

This review is reprinted from the Sept. 21, 2006 issue of gazz in The Charleston Gazette. Photo at right “Red Slide” by Michael Keller.

THE SHOW: “Charleston and Vicinity” at the Byrd Federal Courthouse through Oct. 31.

By Amanda Miller
For the Gazette

The group photography show on display in the federal courthouse, titled “Charleston and Vicinity,” features work by 10 local artists, whose subject matter ranges from the Capitol dome to Kanawha State Forest.

With several photographs on display, show curator Betty Rivard sets the tone for the exhibit. Her work, leaning towards photojournalism with a snapshot feel to it, lives up to the matter-of-fact title of the show. It’s Charleston and vicinity - no more, no less. Much of the work takes this theme to unpretentious and minimal ends, finishing strong. Others seem uninspired and better suited to a dentist’s office.

Highlights include Amy Williams, with her composition in “CTC,” and “Steeples” by Steve Payne, for its rich color combinations. Thorney Lieberman’s “Capitol Dome,” of impeccable print quality, is one of several grandiose shots of the state’s chromed Capitol. Mark Wolfe’s subject matter lends itself well to abstraction, such as the Charleston-Korolev Connection statue on Kanawha Boulevard.

Seasoned digital photographers may cringe at the slathering of Photoshop filters on Bruce Haley’s work. If you like William Eggleston, or have a nostalgic soft spot for Americana, you might like Robin Hammer. Michael Keller presents solid studies of color and composition, and Laura Moul provides a nice reprieve from the concrete with her nature photography.

All of the work would benefit from a more cohesive presentation. A well-curated show should always list dates and media for each piece. The differences between some photo processes are night and day; is it too much to ask which ones are silver gelatin, which are chromogenic color, and which are digital ink jet prints?

And although an artist’s statement isn’t necessary here, it would be nice to see a list of all the artists involved along with the title of the show - just something to indicate that this is a group exhibit.

Those interested in Charleston’s historical architecture and expansive views will enjoy this exhibit coordinated by The Judiciary Arts Program. Those looking for groundbreaking subject matter will find it’s as tame as should be expected for an art show held within the federal courthouse. In any case, it’s a welcomed chance to glimpse familiar parts of the city through someone else’s eyes.

Amanda Miller holds a BFA in new media and photography from West Virginia University, where she also focused on modern art theory and contemporary art criticism. She is a West Virginia native and exhibits installation-based work throughout the state.