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Harlem Postcards Spring 2007

04.11-07.01.2007

Berni Searle Born 1964, Cape Town, South Africa Lives and works in New York, NY and Cape Town, South Africa DSC00123.JPG, 2007 

Taken from the top of an open air tourist bus which passed by the wake of James Brown at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem on the 28th December 2006, DSC00123.JPG is a snapshot of an event that I encountered by chance, reflecting my own transient position in relation to what I saw. Barricades, police, and masses of people could signal a very different set of circumstances depending on your experiences and where you’re coming from. On the other hand, the long queues of people paying their last respects to James Brown are reminiscent of the snake-like formations of people who stood for hours to vote in the first South African democratic elections in 1994. Each attest to the determination of people to have their sentiments and voices heard.

Touhami Ennadre Born 1953, Casablanca, Morocco Lives and works in Paris, France Lenox Lounge, 2004 

At the Lenox Lounge, at this very moment, the heartbeat of Harlem echoed in everyone’s hearts. The echoes took form in music and dance, generating a spirit and energy that united us all.

Xavier Cha Born 1980, Los Angeles, CA Lives and works in New York, NY Sense in Front, 2007 

front in back

sense in front

 

Jonathan Calm Born 1971, Brooklyn, NY Lives and works in New York, NY Wagner Runoff #1, 2007 

This photograph, titled Wagner Runoff #1, is the first in a series called Runoffs. It reflects personal ruminations on my childhood memories of home in an urban housing complex. Like memory itself, each photograph is a reflection, in this case a standing pool of water on a playground. The stillness of the water becomes a mirror in which I see not just the building but also a portrait of my early self. The blue sky matches my youthful optimism to explore life beyond the complex. Together the playground, water, building, and sky capture a point of origin where I am touched by the idealism of my youth and my adult ambivalence when I reconsider that place and time.

Harlem Postcards Spring 2007

04.11-07.01.2007

Berni Searle Born 1964, Cape Town, South Africa Lives and works in New York, NY and Cape Town, South Africa DSC00123.JPG, 2007 

Taken from the top of an open air tourist bus which passed by the wake of James Brown at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem on the 28th December 2006, DSC00123.JPG is a snapshot of an event that I encountered by chance, reflecting my own transient position in relation to what I saw. Barricades, police, and masses of people could signal a very different set of circumstances depending on your experiences and where you’re coming from. On the other hand, the long queues of people paying their last respects to James Brown are reminiscent of the snake-like formations of people who stood for hours to vote in the first South African democratic elections in 1994. Each attest to the determination of people to have their sentiments and voices heard.

Touhami Ennadre Born 1953, Casablanca, Morocco Lives and works in Paris, France Lenox Lounge, 2004 

At the Lenox Lounge, at this very moment, the heartbeat of Harlem echoed in everyone’s hearts. The echoes took form in music and dance, generating a spirit and energy that united us all.

Xavier Cha Born 1980, Los Angeles, CA Lives and works in New York, NY Sense in Front, 2007 

front in back

sense in front

 

Jonathan Calm Born 1971, Brooklyn, NY Lives and works in New York, NY Wagner Runoff #1, 2007 

This photograph, titled Wagner Runoff #1, is the first in a series called Runoffs. It reflects personal ruminations on my childhood memories of home in an urban housing complex. Like memory itself, each photograph is a reflection, in this case a standing pool of water on a playground. The stillness of the water becomes a mirror in which I see not just the building but also a portrait of my early self. The blue sky matches my youthful optimism to explore life beyond the complex. Together the playground, water, building, and sky capture a point of origin where I am touched by the idealism of my youth and my adult ambivalence when I reconsider that place and time.