Ecclesiasticus: “Let us now praise famous men, and our fathers that begat us.”
Walker Evans’ impassioned, genre-shattering photography in Let Us Now Praise Famous Men, represents a major influence on Gary Baldwin’s current work. Yet the radically agitated indifference of Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!, Devo’s... Read more
Ecclesiasticus: “Let us now praise famous men, and our fathers that begat us.”
Walker Evans’ impassioned, genre-shattering photography in Let Us Now Praise Famous Men, represents a major influence on Gary Baldwin’s current work. Yet the radically agitated indifference of Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!, Devo’s equally well-observed yet rhetorically antithetical debut album, holds just as much sway. This ongoing series of portraiture, Are We Not Famous Men?, explores both the necessity and impossibility of capturing the constant flux of life in a snapshot. Culled from the photographs of family, friends, neighbors, and the occasional passerby, the artist is attempting to create a descriptive and declarative dialogue regarding the subjects and their environment. Yet not unlike a novel, whose protagonist has escaped the author’s ability to contain him, who has gone rogue, the men, women, and children presented here have taken on a life of their own. So rather than trying to align the subjects to a theme or concept, this is a celebration of their common humanity. Ultimately the statement these portraits attempt to make beg a question in the face of our image saturated culture. They question our differences and ask why each and every one of us is not deserving of praise.
