Benjamin Heller

Flights - Scotland, Skibo Castle, Dornoch, 2015

2015

In his latest show, Benjamin Heller invites us to enter a poetic space of echo and convergence. As a photographer, sculptor, and performer, movement is key in this body of work, that is punctuated by self portraits selected from the series "The Long Walk: Analog Narratives". This series features pieces collected over an extended period of time spent traveling. It is a window to the interior landscapes he seeks to find reflected in the world, to contain a sense of this intimate vastness. All of the images can be viewed as variations on a self-portrait. The places of intimacy and sense of vastness contained in the photographs can convey a sense of transport that enhances the viewer's visual experience. The "echoes" we find in the show reside in multiplicities of human and physical forms, rolling natural curves, and animals in flight; all intended to provide a resonance with the contours of earth, water, and wind. The result is an array of images captivating in themselves, but also given new meaning in the context of Robin Rice's skillful curatorial arrangement. Her intuitive placement creates a graphic narrative for the viewer to follow and decipher, encouraged by the convergence of the poetic titles of the works. Traces of poetry, sculpture, the lines of the body, lived experience are also evoked in Heller's photographs, in movement and action. He also finds inspiration in photographer Duane Michals' framing of expressive narratives, and in Sally Mann's felt sense of powerful physical presence. Photographer Miranda Penn Turin, in reviewing the exhibition, said "I can almost hear a soundtrack, and it's the sound of wind". The invitational image is entitled "Fall," a graceful figure, suspended in a glowing arc, light streaming upwards, eyes closed in rapture. This light sits in contrast to the infinite shadow of the black background, conjuring a certain atmosphere. Heller believes that it is shadows that allow the viewer to reside in the experience – this image does just that. These imagined environments speak to our converging lives and the echoed moments we experience, embodying for each viewer, just what Benjamin Heller connects with while photographing. Another view of self portraiture at the front sign in desk, is an image reading, "and the soul wanted to move," between the keys of a typewriter. This show is a mirror of a desire to move. The black & white images capture simultaneously this movement and stillness, asking us to pause between the natural forces that rise and fall. Heller employs multiple-exposure and a fixed 4x5...

Listing is for UNFRAMED print. Inquire within for framing. Edition of 20 CURRENT EXHIBITION - runs through February 25, 2017. Any framed photographs purchased during the show will be after February 25th. If the exhibition piece is sold or the customer orders a different print size, the photograph is produced upon purchase. Please allow two weeks for production. Shipping time depends on method of shipping. Price is subject to availability. The Robin Rice Gallery reserves the right to adjust this price depending on the current exhibition of the photograph. ABOUT In this exhibition, Mindaugas Gabrenas invites us to reflect on the poetics of place through his lyrical and surrealist imagery. His hand-printed silver gelatin prints reveal abandoned regions, wild coasts and strange territories from Lithuania to Scotland to America. As a scientific innovator, he uses unique techniques and unconventional materials in order to create his whimsical, dream photos. In “Spinning The Wheel”, stars trace the sky in a curved motion and meet the water below creating a sense of the infinite. As Gabrenas explores and captures landscapes through very long exposures, he actually meditates and reflects on the world around him encouraging his viewers to imagine themselves within the landscapes and dream with him. In another image “Dream About an Empty House”, that was taken in Lithuania, we see a young girl from behind in a red polka dotted dress as she faces an abandoned home. Using his handmade camera he constructed by merging two cameras—a Kiev 88 and a Kodak Duaflex II. The viewfinder of the Duaflex serves as an additional filter on the lens of the Kiev 88, which is fixed to its body with several macro rings. Before shooting the film, he wraps it in black rye bread and waits several days for the mold to grow onto the film. The combination of these two techniques creates a sense of motion around the central figure. “Alternatives”, our invitational image, pulls us into Gabrenas’ world. The focused close-up and abstracted view of train tracks distorts a familiar shape into a strange and unusual form. The tracks lead you in the distance, a blurry city of New York. The ironic lack of human life in New York City conveys a mystifying sense of place. In “Something With a Head”, we’re taken to the Lithuanian seaside where silhouetted figures stand on sand dunes watching...

Wings, limited edition photograph, signed, Platinum/Palladium Print My fascination with birds of prey began eight years ago. There have been nesting owls on my family’s land in the ...

Eagle Owl Flying, limited edition photograph, signed, Platinum/Palladium Print My fascination with birds of prey began eight years ago. There have been nesting owls on my family’s l...