I suppose one could try to explain this beauty rationally; talk about how urban environments are designed for large masses of people, and how the nightly absence of such populations is bound to create a sense of surrealism. Or maybe how the necessity for artificial light in a city-setting reminds gazers of civilization’s simultaneous dominance and fragility. But I prefer to just look, and so do photographers Helen K. Garber, Ginny Mangrum, and Bill Sosin.

In their combined exhibition, entitled “Night Lights,” which is on view at the DNJ Gallery right by the intersection of Beverly and La Brea until May 1^st, they have collectively opened their F-stops wide enough to capture the mysteries of life during night-time. The images range from abstract studies of light and shadow, to more relatable scenes of eerie desertion, where most people wouldn’t dare walk without an added quickness to their step.

Helen K. Garber, who is a member of the San Fransisco-based Nocturnes—a group of photographers dedicated to taking pictures at night—will be giving a talk at the gallery this Friday, April 17^th at 5:00 PM as a part of the Miracle Mile Art Walk. Her photographs—mostly black-and-white urban landscapes—have been published in the Los Angeles Times, The Hollywood Reporter, and LA Weekly. She has exhibited all over the country, and been the recipient of numerous photography awards. So come out to hear what she has to say, browse the myriad images of night and light, then take a stroll around the rest of the art walk—if for no other reason than to enjoy the beauty of sunny Los Angeles when there is no sun.

“Night Lights” features photographs by Helen K. Garber, Ginny Mangrum, and Bill Sosin. The exhibition runs until May 1^st at the DNJ Galley located at 154 1/2 La Brea Ave. Helen K. Garber will be speaking on Friday April 17^th at 5:00 PM. For more information, call (323) 931-1311 or visit www.dnjgallery.net.

By Helen Kearns

Please visit the website for directions and artist information. Reservations not required.

His eclectic career as both a skater and an artist has always seemed to be about his own relationship to time and motion.  In his famous photography book, Teenage Smokers, for instance, each medium to close-up image of a young person with a cigarette has the feeling of personal impermanence, like a flash-memory of a kid you might have seen at the mall once when you were nine.

Templeton, especially in his most recent work, seems to be obsessed with these fragile, ephemeral moments, and what they might mean.  His 2008 book, Deformer, which took him 11 years to complete, examines his youth growing up in the ultra-conservative suburban “incubator” of Orange County, using childhood letters, notes, photographs, sketches, and paintings to tell his story with as much physical accuracy as possible—even if it’s all long gone.

His latest photography show, The Seconds Pass, at the Roberts and Tilton Gallery in Culver City once again has Templeton on the move.  These thirty-some separate collages of pictures, mostly all taken from the vantage point of a moving vehicle, attempt to capture exactly where he’s been these last few years, so as not to miss a passing second.

Ed Templeton’s The Seconds Pass can be viewed at the Roberts and Tilton Gallery in Culver City until April 3.  Roberts and Tilton is located at 5801 Washinton Blvd.  For more information, please call (323) 549-0223, or visit www.robertsandtilton.com.

They say it’s smart to have a niche: find what differentiates you from the pack and run with it.  That has been quite true for the owners of Fahey/Klein Gallery on La Brea Blvd.  Focusing entirely on the medium of photography has proven quite the challenge what with a new exhibit that must go up every five weeks, but as David Fahey, co-owner of the gallery mentioned, it’s been well worth it.  We recently sat down with Fahey to discuss Los Angeles’ art scene, photography, and wild times with Peter Beard.  How many other people can you name off the top of your head who can recount stories about Irving Penn, Alfred Stieglitz, Helmut Newton, and Herb Ritts?  We can name only one: David Fahey.

On now through December 5 at the gallery is an exhibition of nudes featuring two distinct artists: Ralph Gibson and Rasmus Mogensen.  A tried and true genre, according to Fahey, these artists really take their work to a new level of innovation.  Gibson’s architectural, piece-by-piece look at the female form implements shadows, light, towels, and stockings to find a host of new, intriguing shapes.  On the other hand, Mogensen’s larger-than-life photographs of nude women posing in nothing but high heels are reminiscent of Helmut Newton with a unique Mogensen touch.  Called “Perfectly Natural”, each photograph in the series has been altered in some minor way to create the artist’s idea of a perfect woman – look closely at them and you’ll see the Photoshop-ed discrepancies.

Having stayed in the same gallery space for twenty-three years, it’s safe to say the owners of Fahey/Klein Gallery know a thing or two about Los Angeles’ changing artistic landscape.  We took a seat and listened to the expert – check out our video to hear what he had to say.

Ralph Gibson and Rasmus Mogensen’s work will be up at Fahey/Klein Gallery through December 5, 2009.  For more information, please call (323) 934-2250 or click here.

On Tuesdays, it is a little easier to wake up.  Some (and I am not naming any names) prefer to pour themselves a cup of ambition after they tumble out of bed to the wise words of Dolly Parton.  We love it and we won’t tell anyone.

Getting up for the grind any day of the week is hard. You’ve got to pay the bills somehow.  And if you have a voyeuristic tendency (and we assume you do), you can turn back the clock to see dozens from Paris, London, and New York in the early ‘50s welcome the working week in Irving Penn’s exhibition, Small Trades.

Penn photographed trades people in their uniforms (or lack of) alongside the tools of their occupation in the Small Trades series.  Each person is photographed in front of a neutral backdrop in style that forms the large body of images taken over decades.  This exhibition will feature photographs handpicked by Penn that the museum acquired last year, including 155 gelatin silver prints and 97 platinum/palladium prints.

You can whistle, workin’ 9 to 5, what a way to make a living, on your way there.  That is, if you can get the time off.

Irving Penn’s exhibition Small Trades is currently on display at the J. Paul Getty Museum.  Click here for more information.

Photo: Irving Penn, Seamstress Fitter, London, 1950; Credit: The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles

In honor of the 50th anniversary of its original publication, MOCA is celebrating this text with an exhibit titled Robert Frank’s “The Americans,” displaying Frank’s complete portfolio in the identical order as he originally saw fit.

Most of us are familiar with the post-war Beat Generation movement of the 1960s and its front man  Jack Kerouac. He is most famous for a little migratory novel titled On the Road, which he wrote during a trans-American road trip he took in April 1951. What most people don’t know is that it took Kerouac three — yes, only three (albeit productive) — months to complete his final manuscript.

It took Frank a little longer than Kerouac to complete and record his road trip across the US.  Two years and 20,000 negatives later, Frank produced his final product. We should note, Frank and Kerouac were not in cahoots with each other regarding their respective works, but it is clear that they were both inspired by the static energy of the time. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that Kerouac himself wrote the introduction to Frank’s English edition of The Americans.  Appropriately enough, Kerouac’s introductory words are displayed in the forward of MOCA’s show. Kerouac writes, “After seeing these pictures you end up finally not knowing whether a jukebox is sadder than a coffin.” It is with these words that the viewer is introduced to Frank’s collection of poignant images.

All 83 black and white photographs highlight various mundane objects like cars, diners, and roads, which Frank used to symbolically represent contemporary post-war life. His use of a hand-held Leica camera and a wide-angle lens gave his photographs a controversial and — in the long run — influential style, accurately capturing the world that surrounded him.

The photographs have a certain sad, suspended quality to them. They capture a postponement of daily life spanning across America’s heartland, making the collection feel, if nothing else, uncompromisingly complete. Especially at the present time when the US is once again undergoing a certain depressed cultural revolution, Frank’s recession-like photographs remind us of what was, what is, and everything that came between. The nostalgic ‘tough-times’ nature of the collection is peculiar. Granted, they are a nice revisiting, but they don’t encourage us to go back in time — the grayness in these photographs has little to do with the fact that they’re in black and white.

–By Andrea F. Pagliai

The collection will be at MOCA until October 19th, 2009. The best time to visit is certainly Thursdays, as the gallery stays open till late and admission is FREE!  For more information, please click here or call: 213.626.6222.

Image courtesy of MOCA

As long as you are not on the Hollywood walk of fame, when we Angelenos see someone holding a big Nikon or Canon SLR camera, we often assume “paparazzi” and tend to turn our heads, hoping for a glimpse of a celebrity.  As a photographer, I have been denied access to certain restaurants and stores just for having my good old camera with me. We often forget that there is a whole field of photography out there that now-a-days we take for granted; photojournalism – the non-celebrity kind.

The Annenberg Space for Photography’s second exhibition, “Pictures of the Year International – The World In High Resolution” is a real treat for us to have here in Los Angeles because it’s the first time in 65 years that the exhibit has been shown outside of the University of Missouri’s School of Journalism. Over 45,000 entries were received, all competing for a slot in the exhibit that is the oldest and most prestigious photojournalism competition in the world.

If you haven’t been to the Annenberg Space for Photography yet, you are missing out.  As most museums show only framed prints of artists work, the Annenberg is home to two 7′ x 14′ seamless glass screens that have real-projection imaging systems that exceed the level of image quality offered by Blu-Ray players.  Watching photographs appear and fade with this caliber of stunning clarity and saturation paired with surround sound music will make your eyes and ears meld into one.

Walking through the circular gallery followed by the stunning presentation of images on the glass screens, it’s amazing how much our memories fade (even in the span of a year), but can be quickly recalled when presented with startling imagery. That happens almost immediately at this exhibit, with photographs of the most exciting and haunting memories of 2008.  We see a year of global conflict, including post-war violence in Kenya, the terrorist attack in Mumbai, Russian and Georgian attacks upon each other, and the inescapable violence in Gaza.  There are captive images of corrupt business practices, a crash in the world wide economy, hurricanes in Haiti, and reflections on worldwide ecology issues.  There are also many positive images, including those of the Olympics in Beijing and the historic presidential race here in America. These and numerous other photographs will bring these events into perspective for everyone.  It’s interesting how a photograph can engage people from all backgrounds and of all languages – they universally affect all.

Though we all have seen news stories that include “pictures of the year” before – watching these photographs on the 7′ x 14′ screens allows you to not only see the photos, but to feel them almost to the point where you are entering the moment they are justifying.  In the words of Ansel Adams, “A photograph is often looked at, but rarely looking into.”

Annenberg Space for Photography is open Wednesday-Sunday from 11-6pm and is located at Century Plaza, 2000 Avenue of the Stars, Century City.  The exhibit is up until November 1st and there is no entrance fee.

-By Gray Malin

Video courtesy of the Annenberg Space for Photography.

Boston Ballet has been since its inception in 1963 a pioneer.  The first professional ballet company in New England, the Boston Ballet is a true representative of ballet in this country over the last forty years.  Mastering works from traditional, story ballets to George Balanchine pieces, and even premiering today’s contemporary choreographers’ works, the Boston Ballet’s repertoire is enviable.  Their roster, like those of any reputable ballet company, is full of Cubans, Russians, and some Americans who perform roles in everything from the classical Don Quixote, Swan Lake, and Giselle to George Balanchine’s more contemporary Rubies and Peter Martins’ Distant Light. 

Getting to know the Boston Ballet has been difficult up to now, wouldn’t you say?  There’s the 3,000 mile separation, the fact that you’ve been busy researching our own Los Angeles Ballet, and, maddeningly, they don’t often tour to Los Angeles.  Well, dear readers, your prayers have been answered.  On view now at the Schomburg Gallery at Bergamot Station is your chance to find out more about Yury Yanowsky, Erica Cornejo, Karine Seneca, and the like.  A photographic essay, Boston Ballet and Beyond by Wally Gilbert takes us through a season’s worth of performances (and beyond).  The photos beautifully capture the wide range of works that Boston Ballet boasts in its repertoire and shows the company in its best form.  While you travel through the exhibit admiring an arabesque here and a grande jetee there, try to figure out each dancers nationality or just choose a favorite.  Getting to know a company better always means choosing favorites. 

Boston Ballet and Beyond is on view at the Schomburg Gallery now through June 6.  Please visit their website or call (310) 453-5757 for more information.