The Sun Also Rises
accent gallery
September 11, 2009 – January 10, 2010
The rising sun can hold strong personal and metaphoric possibilities—the promise of newness, hope for the future, the notion of a new beginning, or something quite the opposite—the drudgery or mundaneness of the very thing that can bring others so much joy—another day. How does one begin to communicate or create meaning with a wholly ubiquitous and universal image?
The sunrise is a familiar phenomenon that can invite consideration of concepts as straightforward as location, weather conditions, and landmarks, as well as complex concepts of time, spirituality, and personal search for meaning. The beauty and commonality of the sunrise image can also make it outright cliché.
In this exhibition, we invited the public to consider the occasion of the rising sun, to capture this photographically, and to submit the images that best connect to their own personal meaning of sunrise. The exhibition of these images will allow the audience to consider not only notions of beauty, but the motivations of the photographers, the impact of the repeated image, and interpretations of the meaning of these works. The exhibition represents the coming together of individuals with diverse ages, backgrounds, artistic experience, technical skill, cultural backgrounds and viewpoints on life and its meaning. By archiving and exhibiting numerous photographs created by the public, can we successfully elicit consideration of concepts grander than the images themselves? As Ernest Hemingway writes in his novel that gives this exhibition its title, "Isn't it pretty to think so?"
Artists included in this exhibition:
Don Anderson, Mary A. Ayshford, Sarah Ann Baker, Karen Barrie, Jane G. Belau, Theresa M. Neo and Theresa Bobula, Craig A. Challgren, Ed Charbonneau, Peter Happel-Christian (pictured above), David Lee Coates, Terri DeGezelle, Sophia Dunn-Walker, Margaret Eggenberger, Katinka Galanos, Stacy Gjere, Alison Good, Marie Hedtke, Yvonne Hubmayr, Simon Huelsbeck, Huston, Helen Jiang, Richard Johannisson, Sharon Koelblinger, Mark Owen Lissick, Darrin Little, Curt Lund, Linda Passon-McNally, Eric Menk, Rajeev Muthyala, David Nusbaum, Phyllis Olson, Becky Olstad, Alexandra G. Paisley, Rhea Pappas, Jason and Jesse Pearson, Steven Richardson, John E. Rudquist, Cheyenne L. Seeley, Tony and Judy Smithson, Alex Stork, Scott Stulen, Vladmir Stupar, Mark K. Thompson, Linda Thorson, Susan Waughtal and Rochelle Woldorsky