“May at Soho Photo Gallery” Exhibition

Soho Photo Gallery

This event has ended.

Lee Backer
Detained at the Golden Door: The Unseen Side of Ellis Island

The hospital complex on the south side of Ellis Island stands in a state of decay that began when Ellis Island closed its doors in 1954. Despite the crackled walls, bare floors, and painted surfaces dulled by time, the deserted rooms and corridors of the Contagious and Infectious Diseases section still speak of the immigrants detained there to await their fate. Some recovered sufficiently to enter America; others were returned to their homelands.

Allan Markman
The Lathe of Time

Objects that I scavenge for my photographs are transformed by time and exposure to the elements. Often the changes to their patina and form render them unrecognizable. Detritus found on the beach are sculpted, quite literally, by the sands of time. When these objects are combined, often with flora, the produced synergistic effect is rendered harmonious because they all have been subjected to the constant and relentless lathe of time.

R. Wayne Parsons
Portals

Portals take us to the unusual, or the unexpected, or the familiar seen in a new way. While the square with the white border that has been rotated 45 degrees provides continuity, the diversity of subjects in the images reflects the incredible variety of our world. The series is sufficiently ambiguous to allow multiple interpretations. One can’t go astray by approaching the series with a sense of play, both serious and frivolous.

Chad Schaefer
Dim Lights, Thick Smoke & Loud, Loud Music

Waylon Jennings said “the honky-tonks of Texas were my natural second home…” and that is where traditional honkytonk music is still alive – in rundown little beer joints. The people who play, listen, dance and live the lifestyle, as if time had stood still, don’t change wherever you go – whether it’s the Little Longhorn Saloon in Austin, Texas, or Skinny Dennis in Brooklyn, NY. I’ve spent the past ten years capturing this world on film using vintage cameras and flashbulbs to give the images a timeless feel.

Seena Sussman
It Was Two Floors Up: Times Square Boxing Gym

About 30 years ago, through a grimy window in Times Square, I saw two shadowy figures dancing about. I climbed the stairs to discover “The Times Square Boxing Gym” run by a former “Golden Glover,” Jimmy Glenn. For a few months, Jimmy allowed me access to produce a photo essay of the rituals that make a boxer. This gym — which hosted some of the greats – closed in 1994.

2019 International Portfolio Competition WInners
Soho Photo Gallery’s panel of jurors for the 2019 International Portfolio Competition winners selected three portfolios for exhibition. Each portfolio will be on exhibit for one month. There were 117 portfolios submitted consisting of 1,944 images. The portfolios came from 29 states and nine countries. Ruth Lauer-Menenti of Palenville, NY and Allison Nichols of Rochester, NY will show in this month and Erika Masterson of Satellite Beach, Florida exhibited in April.

Ruth Lauer-Manenti
Gathering Remnants

Feeling overwhelmed by disturbing events in my life, I turned to my work. I never before approached my work as a refuge. Looking through the boundary of the picture frame I could see the problems I was experiencing with a better perspective. I photographed the objects that I live with, many of them old, and marveled at their imperfections and ability to survive. As those events have passed, I continue to work on this project as I was uplifted by the resulting creations.

Allison Nichols
Eighteen Mile Creek

This body of work consists of cyanotype chemigrams that explores the space of a Superfund site located in Lockport, New York. The images are created solely through the interactions between photographic chemistry, contaminated water collected from Eighteen Mile Creek, and light. Ranging in tone from deep blue to harsh yellow, they make visual gestures towards landscapes and topography, but also towards toxicity and warning. Each print is a unique, one-of-a-kind object, in a state of change and decay.