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Samia Halaby: Six decades of art at the Eskenazi Museum of Art
Throughout 2024, beginning on 10 February, the MSU Broad Art Museum and the Eskenazi Museum of Art present a series of exhibitions dedicated to the artist Samia Halaby.
Source: MSU Broad Art Museum · Image: 1 Samia Halaby, Six Golden Heroes, 2022. Collection of the artist, New York. 2 Samia Halaby, The City (Al Quds), 1959. Private collection, North Carolina. Both images © Samia Halaby
Samia Halaby: Centers of Energy opens at the Eskenazi Museum of Art on February 10, 2024. The first American survey of Halaby’s work, the exhibition will examine formal and thematic relationships across bodies of her work, considering simultaneously the influence of Halaby’s time spent in the Midwest, her years of teaching, and her analytic approach to generating forms, both on canvas and in computer code. Halaby’s current explorations in large-scale painting will be exhibited alongside her earliest forays into abstraction. Significantly, her kinetic paintings will be reanimated in real time to demonstrate the development of abstract forms into moving compositions of color and texture.
“Bringing the long arc of Samia Halaby’s remarkable career home to where she earned her MFA and taught painting is an extraordinary tribute to one of the greatest living artists. I am honored to work with Halaby to realize this ambitious contribution to art history,” said Elliot Josephine Leila Reichert, Curator of Contemporary Art at the IU Eskenazi Museum of Art.
“Samia Halaby’s dynamic and innovative approach to artmaking will offer IU students new ways of seeing and thinking about contemporary art. This partnership with the MSU Broad Art Museum presents a unique opportunity for student engagement across two Midwest campuses at institutions that value artistic experimentation,” said David A. Brenneman, Wilma E. Kelley Director, IU Eskenazi Museum of Art.
Dustin Ha, a Korean-American native of Los Angeles raised in El Salvador, seamlessly embodies three distinct identities, persistently navigating the landscape of an outsider. Through the lens of his camera, he uncovers a profound sense of purpose, dispelling the persistent Sisyphean anxiety that has long haunted him.
Fearlessly confronting inner demons through meticulous photography, Ha celebrates the inherent misfit in all of us. With a masterful use of juxtaposition and unconventional formats, he weaves a compelling and unique narrative that takes center stage in Part 2 of our Exclusive Interview.
Read PART 1 of our Exclusive Interview with Dustin Ha
Why did you decide to focus on the themes highlighted in “REMEMBER WHY YOU’RE HERE” as the primary subject of your work, and what do you like to photograph the most?
Mental health is a major theme of both my photography practice and life in general. I have struggled throughout my life with a past that haunts me and a debilitating anxiety about what the future holds. But I have worked on myself to accept my demons and angels. Now I actively try to live in the present. Through these efforts, I see myself in other people, which creates a deep empathy that translates into my work. Lack of confidence, awkwardness, and self-loathing are universal and self-fulfilling. These are my people and the ones I prefer to photograph. If I can learn to love myself, so can they, especially when they see how they can transform with my camera work. Everyone has a story worth telling.
It takes less than a second to take a photo, but how much time and effort go into the preparation for the perfect shot? Can you walk us through your creative process, from concept to execution?
Preparation is key to a successful photoshoot, but that varies depending on the location or the model, each informing the other. With the pieces in place, I lock in a concept and plot out three to ten must-take shots. But I find overplanning can box me in, so I like to stay fluid during a photoshoot and pivot when things aren’t working. Sometimes, those must-take shots get trumped by a thunderbolt of inspiration that exceeds whatever original vision I had. My process involves wide shots that give me latitude to crop in. Out of one thousand pictures taken in a shoot, I narrow it down to 400 that I will import into my computer and whittle down from there.
Most photographers hate the editing part of the job, but I love it because that is where the real work is done. Photoshopping is rare beyond the occasional blemish because I savor raw images and feel blemishes are part of the story. But I do color correct first, regardless if my images remain in color or are converted into black & white. Choosing color vs B&W all depends on which evokes my emotions loudest. The final test is downloading three to five versions of my favorite images onto my phone to see what reads best since most people consume media primarily on their handheld device.
What cameras and equipment do you use in your work, and how do these choices contribute to the unique style of your photography?
I shoot digital and film using Leica cameras with 50mm and 35mm lenses with a small flash. Traveling light is important for me since I cut my teeth doing street photography. Leica is my camera brand of choice because of the high resolution that gives me the breathing room to crop images without missing anything. Neither camera has auto-focus so it takes a moment working the rangefinder when I change shots. Depending on the subject and location, I sometimes prefer sharp and crisp images, but occasionally the slightly out-of-focus photographs yield interesting results. The camera is important, but my concepts trump the equipment and make my work stand out.
In your opinion, what is the primary skill set one must possess to be a good photographer? How do you continue to develop and refine your skills over time?
Anyone can buy an expensive camera and start snapping, but there is no substitute for a good eye. It took a lot of mistakes to develop my eye. My evolution from taking forgettable photographs began with taking countless images that I photo-edited to assess what I liked or hated about each one. I would then single out my strongest work and revisit how those pictures were created, so I could replicate the process. I apply this assessment to many professional photographers’ images and try to figure out how they achieved the images that really speak to me. It all comes down to composition, facial expression, and angles.
Without giving away your trade secrets, walk us through your process of preparing for your debut solo exhibition “Remember Why You’re Here” at Helen J Gallery on February 10 in Los Angeles.
The first step was to sift through the thousands of photographs to see which specific images simultaneously give me a sense of despair and hope. Next, I printed the winners on various materials and found that matte canvas gave my work the most natural appearance for both color and shades of grey. Matte canvas also has more texture that makes it malleable.
The folding process happened slowly as my emotions tell me how to fold each image: the stronger the feeling, the bigger the fold in the print. The somber pictures’ folds are looser and wavy like calm ocean ripples. The goal is to create the illusion that the image is a reflection beneath the water. If the end result doesn’t evoke both despair and hope, I start from scratch.
Your work is unique in that you fold your images to create something singular that becomes more than just a limited-run edition photo, more akin to a painting where it’s a 1-of-1. What do you hope your exhibition will contribute to the photography canon?
My hope is for art lovers and the not-yet-converted alike to find inspiration in my work and its unique presentation. There should be no rules in art, so I encourage artists to never limit themselves to creating the “right way.” A photograph does not necessarily have to be a flat image on paper in a neat frame. It doesn’t even have to be on paper. There are countless ways to present a photograph that include printing on silk, stainless steel, or copper. Each material absorbs the image differently, creating its own sensations. My choice to go three-dimensional represents my own turbulent mind trying to make sense of this complex world.
From all the amazing photos that you’ve taken, which is your favorite from “Remember Why You’re Here”? Can you share the story or emotion behind that particular image?
My favorite work from “Remember Why You’re Here” is ESC. This piece transports me back to the times in my life when I felt trapped with no escape. To be honest, I still feel that way sometimes. The model in this image appears to be trying to break out of the confines of the photograph. Henry David Thoreau wrote, “Most men lead lives of quiet desperation.” This quote gutted me, and so I promised myself I would never live like that again. And that is why ESC gives me hope because the woman in this image is fighting with her last breath to break free of the fourth wall.
Part 3 is Coming Soon!
Also Read
REMEMBER WHY YOU’RE HERE: Spectacular Photographic Journey by Dustin Ha
Interview organized by Mon Dieu Projects. The World Art News (WAN) is not liable for the content of this publication. All statements and views expressed herein are opinions only. Act at your own risk. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission. © The World Art News
The post Photographing Paradox: Exclusive Interview with Dustin Ha – Part 2 appeared first on World Art News.
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