Photography: Defining What's Real

Photographs are often considered, tokens of remembrance, they capture and preserve emotions, feelings, time and place. In the words of author Eudora Welty “A good snapshot stops a moment from running away.”

             Photography has always been an interest of mine but I’ve hardly had the time to pursue it. With this in mind I set out to find a place locally that centered on photography hoping for some inspiration and more importantly motivation to become a better photographer. In my pursuit I discovered the Silver Eye Center for Photography, a photo gallery on the Southside of Pittsburgh. I decided right then and there this was it.

Upon Arriving at the gallery 27 pairs of eyes greet visitors. The building however happens to be mostly unoccupied. These eyes belong to the teenagers being featured in the current Classroom Photos exhibit. 

The gallery is initially empty except for the man behind the desk. He’s wearing a red and blue plaid shirt and has tortoise shelled thick-rimmed glasses, and he looks to be in his late 20’s and very is approachable.

Dawoud Bey, Odalys, 2003, Chadsey High School, Detroit, Michigan Courtesy of the artist

The smell of the polished wood is quite evident. The gallery is composed of hardwood floors and plain white paint covers the walls. It is very trendy, with white fixtures, and studio lights focused on the artwork. The gallery is spacious yet still small, there is no furniture. The photos on the wall are griping, some quite haunting, and of course each tell a story.

The gallery attendant, Jeffrey, is very well informed about the gallery and the artistic process, probably due to his time as a student of photography at Pittsburgh Filmmakers. Jeffrey works Saturdays and sees anywhere between 5-10 people visit on any given weekend. He also states that the gallery features both local and national artists.

Jeffery shares that in between shows he helps take down and install exhibitions which he enjoys “It gives me a behind the scenes look at how a gallery functions, and has taught me a lot about marketing myself.” Jeffrey hopes to one day establish himself as a professional photographer and praises working at the gallery for the experience it gives him. It has helped him make well-known contacts in the photography community that will benefit him in the future.

A teenage visitor peruses for a while, taking in the photos.  “I’m impressed with the pictures and their great quality.” She tells me.

Jeffery, is also very excited about the current exhibition in the gallery, and shares some information about it. “It is a collection of classroom photos by artist Dawoud Bey.” Seeing Bey’s pictures makes me wonder about him as an artist and more so about his creative process.

According to Dawoud Bey’s website he is a national artist who has been taking photographs for a number of years; He has a Masters of Fine Arts from Yale University and currently resides in Chicago where he is a professor at a local college. Also according to the website he has three books that have been published in conjunction with his exhibitions.

Dawoud Bey, Lauren, 2006, Gateway High School, San Francisco, California Courtesy of the artist

The gallery advertises an upcoming event, which is essentially “An Evening with Dawoud Bey.”

When the night comes, In front of around 100 people in the Carnegie Museum of Art Auditorium, the solemn artist sits in the front row waiting patiently as people file in.

At about 6:35, 5 minutes after the designated start time a woman with short brown hair and an airy voice approaches the podium.

Linda Benedict Jones, curator at the Carnegie Museum of Art begins the lecture by noting it’s been a good year for photography at the museum and in Pittsburgh.

Following the curator’s remarks a very petite dark haired woman, in a dress and boots approaches the podium, I recognize her as Ellen, the director from Silver Eye. She introduces Bey stating that he’s a very sought after artist who has received numerous awards celebrating his work.  

Bey then approaches the stage as the lights dim, and a PowerPoint is projected onto the pull down screen and he then begins speaking slowly and deliberately.

Dawoud Bey is a middle aged African American man, with small gold hoop earrings in his ear, a full beard, wearing all black and casually sipping from the plastic water bottle provided to him.

He takes the audience back to his days as a teenager and enlightens us as to his work all started.  It was 1969 when Bey saw an exhibit in the Metropolitan Museum of Art called “Harlem on my Mind.” The Harlem exhibit was controversial and constructed an image of black America without permission; there were picket lines in front of the Met and he wanted to see the controversy first hand.

Bey says the photos he remembered most were by James VanDeZee who was an African-American Photographer taking pictures of other African Americans. Looking at VanDerZee’s pictures was the first time he had seen pictures of African American subjects on the walls of a museum.

Bey tells of how he inherited his first camera at the age of 16 from his godfather who had recently passed away. He had no idea what to do with the camera and “only took it to be polite” however it piqued his curiously and he eventually learned how to use the camera.  His passion for his craft is evident from his words and body language. The audience is hanging on his every word.

Bey tells us he learned a great deal about photography during his early years. He had to figure out how one finds subjects, and realized that the photos that resonated the most were those with human subjects, but didn’t know where to find them. Eventually he picked a place and was ultimately able to see how photos functioned as a window into the past. 

Another influence on Bey was Roy DeCarava, who was also an African American photographer. His photos were significant to Bey because they were about African American subjects and they were entirely self-motivated, no newspaper or studio interest. DeCarava’s photos showed Bey that African American subjects could be the basis of rigorous art practices.

The Faces of a Generation

Living in Pittsburgh for the past two years I’m constantly being reminded that “the city is full of hidden gems, you just have to find them.” I set out to do just that by creating a “Pittsburgh Bucket List” or a list of things to do before I graduate. Among the things included on this list was “explore the city’s art scene.” Not being much of an art expert and not knowing exactly what the city had to offer I did what anyone in my position would in pursuit of a new discovery, I Googled “Pittsburgh Art” and boy did I get more than I bargained for. An extensive list came up including museums, places of higher education, and a plethora of “related searches.” Needless to say I was overwhelmed and decided to regroup. I realized if I was going to sift through all of this information I needed to narrow my search so I decided to focus on a specific type of art.

Photography has always been something that I’ve wanted to get more into, I even asked my parents for a brand new camera for Christmas and sadly have barely taken it out of the box. With this in mind I wanted to look for a place that centered on photography. Having this in mind I went back to the drawing board, or rather Google search engine. This time around the Silver Eye Center for Photography came up. I did a little preliminary digging on their website and figured they’d be a great place to visit. It seemed like a smaller gallery and with that in mind it would be easier to access people who worked there for longer periods of time.

Dawoud Bey, Kevin, 2005, Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts Courtesy of the artist

I sent a preliminary e-mail to the education coordinator Richard Kelly and he was fascinated by what I told him I was doing and said I was free to come and go in the gallery as a I pleased.

I ventured into the gallery on a Saturday, a day that I figure plenty of people would be in and out of the gallery and it would mean optimal observation.

When I got there it was raining profusely, I noticed the mesh umbrella holder outside the entrance, and luckily there were other umbrellas in the holder or else I may not have thought twice about bringing my dripping wet umbrella into a gallery full of art and hardwood floors, Something that would have been understandably awkward.

I’m greeted by the smiling face of a man sitting behind a desk, he’s wearing a read and blue plaid shirt and has tortoise shelled thick rimmed glasses, he looks to be in his late 20’s and very approachable. I let him know what I’m there to do and he is very welcoming even offering me a chair, which I happily oblige seeing as I’d be there for the next 5 hours. I know I’d have to interview this man but I didn’t want to come through the door bombarding him with questions so I took a seat in my plastic folding chair in the back of the gallery and proceeded to observe.

When I arrived the gallery was empty except for the man at the desk, and it was deathly silent. So continued to observe my physical surroundings. The smell of the hardwood floors is quite evident. The gallery is composed of hardwood floors and plain white paint covers the walls. It is very trendy, with white fixtures, and studio lights focused on the artwork. The gallery is spacious yet still small, I notice that there is no furniture.  Which is probably what makes the gallery seem so spacious.

While checking my phone for the time I noticed that I had no cell phone service, something I’m not used to but it forced me to concentrate on the gallery and the art.

After about 30 minutes the first visitors come in, they’re an older couple; their initial presence was noticed by the beeping of the alarm, which chimed whenever the front door was opened. They briefly perused the gallery looking at the pictures and noting the captions, they looked very into the art so I didn’t bother them with questions.

After the first couple left I took the opportunity to chat with the friendly gallery attendant, Jeffrey. Jeffery was more than happy to answer any questions I presented him with and happily interjected his opinions. “So Jeffrey tell me a little about yourself?” I began as a way to let him open up on his own terms. He went over his employment history informing me he has only been employed at the gallery for a short time, only since last October. He was very well informed about the gallery and the artistic process, Probably due to his time as a student of photography at Pittsburgh Filmmakers “I’m studying alternative processes, which is photography before black in white…. [the purpose] is to find new ways of using the origins modernly.” Jeff happily informed me regarding his particular craft. Jeffrey only works Saturdays and sees anywhere between 5-10 people come in on any given weekend.

Dawoud Bey, Odalys, 2003, Chadsey High School, Detroit, Michigan Courtesy of the artist

“The gallery features both local and national artists” Jeffery told me. I was surprised by his depth of knowledge and wondered how he came to be employed at the gallery. “I got started just be visiting the gallery, and then I was eventually hired, I love it.” He went on to say. Jeffrey was so enthusiastic when talking about the gallery it was hard not to admire him.

He also took it upon himself to tell me some of the unique things about Silver Eye “The gallery also features a fellowship competition which has a $3000 prize that is essentially used to produce a piece of work that is exhibition ready.” According to Jeffery.

Jeffery also wanted to make sure I knew everything the gallery had to offer. “There are Classes, offered on-site on the second floor where we have offices; we also offer professional workshops, which show how to integrate photography into business and we also offer 'photo-safaris’ which include learning the basics of DSLR cameras and special trips to places around the city to work on various photography skills.” It seemed as if he was raking his brain to make sure he’d mentioned everything, but that was enough by far. I was starting to realize what an asset to the city this place truly was.

Jeffery shared that in between shows he has helped take down and install exhibitions which he enjoys “It gives me a behind the scenes look at how a gallery functions, and has taught me a lot about marketing myself.” Jeffrey hopes to one day establish himself as a professional photographer and praises working at the gallery, which has helped him make well-known contacts in the photography community that will help him in the future.

Jeffrey is simply a man trying to make it in a profession he loves, starting at the bottom in hopes of making it by networking and using the connections he acquires at the gallery.

The next visitors were a woman and her stepchildren. The teenagers’ names were Alice and Marianna, I asked if they’d like to answer a few questions and they happily obliged. They said they’d found out about the gallery through their step-mom who had heard about it and thought the girls may be interested.

“I’m impressed with the pictures and their great quality and she would love to come back.” Marianna informed me. She said photography is something that really interests her and now that she’s seen the place she will most certainly take advantage of it.

I decided to ask Alice what she believed to be Arts place in society.

Dawoud Bey, Lauren, 2006, Gateway High School, San Francisco, California Courtesy of the artist

“Everybody should be able to clear their mind and be with family and look at nice art.” She thought art was relaxing and she was particularly enjoying the current exhibit.

Jeffery, the gallery attendant was also very excited about the current exhibition in the gallery, and shared with me a little background information about it. “It is a collection of classroom photos by national artist Dawoud Bey.” He said, clarifying that currently there was only one artist on display.  Initially I believed that the gallery featured works by multiple artists.

I moved on from observing the visitors to observing the actual art. The pictures are absolutely captivating, when one walks into the gallery, the sheer size and quantity of the paintings makes one feel as if they have 27 pairs of eyes on them.

The photographs are chromogenic prints of 27 very different teens plagued by death, disease, teen pregnancy, and stereotypes all trying to find their place in the world.

The thing that is probably the most moving about these pictures is that the people featured are very real. They’re what high school students look like, what I looked like and what I saw. These were not images you come to believe are real like the ones you see photo shopped in magazines and on TV, with overly attractive people. These kids have scars, chipped nail polish and messy hair, all visible

Imperfections. They have far from the perfect wardrobe, and that doesn’t bother them one bit, The kids are photographed as they are.

Each picture features a white caption with black text. The captions are first had accounts of each teen’s struggles, passions, and hopes for the future.

The photographs and stories behind them make you wonder where the subjects are now and what became of these people since the some of the photos were taken almost a decade ago. It makes me wonder if they are accomplishing their goals as adults,

Some of the back-stories are rather tragic and almost o bring tears to the viewers eyes. You feel for them and wonder if they made it out of their situations, want to root for them. Which is precisely what the artists intent was I firmly believe.

Seeing the pictures made me think back to when I was in high school and remember what I wanted then, and reflect on it. The photographs made me realize that I was once them, maybe not completely but I was once that semi lost and confused girl behind the camera.

After visiting for an extended time on Saturday I was very pleased with what I’d experienced. I however felt like I was still missing something so I decided I needed to speak with someone else regarding the gallery. I took the opportunity to coordinate with Richard Kelly and he was more than happy to meet with me. 

I showed up the next Thursday and was greeted by Mr. Kelly. He was a nice man with a gentle smile, Brown hair, a bit of a 5 o’clock shadow, and dressed in an indigo button up shirt with black slacks. He was very professional and had a kind face. “I saw [in the guest book] you were here there other day, what’d you think?” He asked me as he opened the locked gallery door. I told Mr. Kelly how I loved the exhibit and he seemed genuinely interested in what I thought. Mr. Kelly then pulled out two chairs for us to sit and chat very casually about the gallery and the exhibit. He informed me that he hadn’t been working at the gallery for very long himself, but had been a member for many years. I had been curious about what it meant to be a “member” of the gallery since beginning the project and he finally cleared things up for me.  “As a photographer you want to belong to something bigger than you. Members are photographers, artists, and people who just love art. As a member you get special benefits like discounts and making connections, while being around people who appreciate the same things as you.“ he clarified.

Dawoud Bey, Sarah, 2005, Lawrence High School, Lawrence Massachusetts Courtesy of the artist

Add captionSince I had only visited one day I was still curious as to how many people frequent the gallery and what types of people come. Mr. Kelly described several types. “Well you get a range of people. You’ve got the regulars who come to every exhibit, you’ve got the people who just happened to be in the area and stumble upon us, and then you’ve got the people who have never been to an exhibit in their life but find something intriguing about what we have to offer and come looking for a connection.”

Mr. Kelly is a photographer and a teacher so I felt it was only right to ask him what he thought of photography. “Photography is very accessible to most people, you can collect what you like and want to enjoy in your own setting, and it’s definitely always evolving.”

I was also quite curious as to how showcased artists are selected and the process behind that. “In terms of this particular gallery the director makes the choices and she has a long term plan that spans 18-24 months.”  According to Mr. Kelly each exhibit, which typically spans between 2-3 months can see over a thousand visitors. 

As for specialty events when they’re looking for submissions such as for their auction they hold every other year that helps fund the gallery, Mr. Kelly said it is not uncommon for them to receive over 100 submissions, but ultimately the director of the gallery decides what will be displayed.

I asked Mr. Kelly to address common misconceptions regarding the gallery and art . “Well, art can be intimidating for people who didn’t grow up in an art enriched environment, and they tend to think art is ‘not for people like me’ but photography is a good way for people unfamiliar to art and museums to ease their way into the art world.” He also addressed how the gallery is bigger than it looks on the outside. “You have an experience when you come in. The size of the gallery is not so big that you feel like its too much.” He insists the gallery is a unique space and community in Pittsburgh, and after doing this I couldn’t agree more.

Mr. Kelly was right about having an experience when visiting the gallery; I defiantly came out having been exposed to something new and loving it. It also jumpstarted my desire to explore more of Pittsburgh and monitor future exhibits the gallery will be displaying.