The Brown Sisters

I was at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) on Tuesday and I came across a photo project entitled The Brown Sisters by photographer Nicholas Nixon.





"Each year since 1975, Boston-based photographer Nicholas Nixon (b. 1947) has made one black-and-white photograph of his wife, Beverly (Bebe) Brown, and her three sisters. Using a large eight-by-ten-inch view camera positioned at eye level, he always photographs the women in the same order from left to right: Heather, Mimi, Bebe, and Laurie. Although he makes multiple exposures, Nixon selects only one photograph to represent the women each year.

Working within these limited parameters, Nixon has created a compelling investigation of both portraiture and the passage of time. Taken as a whole, the 31 photographs made between 1975 and 2005 reveal not only incidental changes in background, lighting, and dress, but also the gradual, incremental aging of the women. Nixon's disciplined approach to photographing the Brown sisters also records the evolving demeanor of the women and suggests their changing relationships with one another. While the photographs have roots in the tradition of the family snapshot, Nixon's artistic rigor and the Brown sisters' commitment to the project transcend this heritage to create a moving testament to the dynamism and complexity of human relationships."

Pretty amazing, don't you think???

I'm almost compelled to start a project like this on my own. Who's in???


lovelovelove,
Cyn

Giant Waterfalls in New York

I read about this art installation this morning.

From The New York Times:

"Four man-made waterfalls, 90 to 120 feet high, will punctuate New York’s waterfront for three months starting in mid-July. The creation of the Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson, the project is a collaboration between the city and the Public Art Fund, the nonprofit organization that presents art around the city. The waterfalls have been designed to be environmentally friendly and will be in New York Harbor at Pier 35 in Lower Manhattan, at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge and between Piers 4 and 5 in Brooklyn and at Governors Island. Money for the project, estimated to cost about $15 million, comes entirely from private funds, and the Economic Development Corporation estimates that the waterfalls will bring more than $50 million to the city’s economy. “Throughout history we have always taken water for granted,” said Mr. Eliasson in a telephone interview from his Berlin studio. “Now people can engage in the physical nature of something as epic as a waterfall.”"

The falls will be in place from mid-July to mid-October.

Another reason to make a little late summer/early fall trip to NYC!

P.S. Olafur Eliasson currently has an exhibit showing at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Take Your Time will be at the SFMOMA through February 24th. Olafur Eliasson "nimbly merges art, science, and natural phenomena to create extraordinary multi-sensory experiences. Challenging the passive nature of traditional art-viewing, he engages the observer as an active participant, using tangible elements such as temperature, moisture, aroma, and light to generate physical sensations." His work is definitely worth checking out.





Lovelovelove,
Cyn