Griffin Museum Education

Griffin State of Mind | Dana Smith

Posted on May 19, 2021

We are continuing our Griffin State of Mind series by introducing you to one of our newest instructors, Dana Smith. Dana will be teaching a workshop at the museum called Mastering Flash: An On-Location, Low-Frills Approach this summer. We hope you will join us in welcoming Dana to the Griffin community.

Tell us how you first connected to the Griffin Museum.

It’s impossible to be a member of the Boston photo community and not know about the Griffin. I’ve been a photography teacher for 20 years and the Griffin Museum has never ceased to be an invaluable resource for anyone learning, teaching, or loving photography.

How do you involve photography in your everyday life? Can you tell us about any images or artists that have caught your attention recently?

@Wing Shya

Fortunately it’s not something I ever have to try to do—it’s involuntary. From the minute I wake up to the moment I fall asleep my brain is thinking about pictures I’ve made, am hoping to make, or saw someone else make that I wish I had made or will eventually become capable of making. I never tire of the process and have yet to live a day where I didn’t want to create an image. As for artists that have inspired me lately, Wing Shya (Hong Kong) is someone that I’m constantly in awe of and whose work is a never-ending treasure trove of cinematic pageantry. While he’s hardly new his work never gets old.

Can you tell us about the new class you will be teaching at the Griffin this summer?

My ‘low-frills’ flash class was designed to take the lighting panic out of on-location photography. Portable flash is a powerful tool but every minute spent futzing with equipment is a minute that could be spent engaging with your subject. The ability to combine strobe with natural/available light opens up so many visual possibilities and allows the photographer to utilize light to custom build their narrative and covey a meaningful story about their subject. As someone who makes a living as an editorial/magazine portrait photographer, nothing ever goes as planned and time is always of the essence. In this workshop we will learn to be resourceful (on the cheap) and work fluidly to create portraits that are beautiful, complex, and emotionally rich.

Has there been a Griffin Museum exhibition that has particularly engaged or moved you?

Years ago there was an exhibition that I can’t recall the name of but it featured the history of the ‘snapshot’ and vernacular photography. As someone who has built his career photographing people, I’ve realized that the soul of nearly every successful portrait is usually connected to something or someone that the viewer has known or seen in their own family photo albums.

What is your favorite place to escape to?

I love Istanbul but the history, colors, and textures can be visually overwhelming so I can’t really call it an escape. I suppose I like to get lost on any left-behind Mainstreet, USA.

What is a book, song or visual obsession you have at the moment?

At the moment I can’t stop listening to an in-store reel-to-reel tape played within K-Mart stores in 1973. Yup, it’s exactly the kind of twisted time warp you’d imagine

If you could be in a room with anyone to have a conversation, who would it be and what would you talk about?

I’m obsessed with the art of storytelling and have been a Springsteen fan for as long as I can remember so I’d have to go with Bruce, but if he’s unavailable I’ll happily sit with Martin Scorsese.

About Dana Smith –

Dana Smith has been a widely published photojournalist and editorial photographer for the past twenty-five years. He has worked with many top editors & art directors in the industry and has photographed for publications such as Time, Newsweek, New York Times Magazine, Forbes, Fortune, and Yankee. His photo-illustrations have been recently in the Washington Post and the Boston Globe.

To see more of Dana Smith‘s work visit his website. He is on Instagram @danasmith17

Atelier 32 | Simone Brogini

Posted on September 24, 2020

In today’s highlight of our Atelier 32 exhibition, we look at the work of Simone Brogini, featured here and tonight in our Artist Talk in conversation with Miren Etcheverry and Conrad Gees. Join us for a discussion about creativity in a pandemic, learning online, and the creativity that can come from life under a new normal. In order for us to learn more about Simone’s creativity, we asked him a few questions.

Which of these images was the impetus for this series? How did it inform how you completed the series?

As the pandemic kept us all home, I was looking at my empty street with no activity from us or our neighbors. I wanted to capture this emptiness and I started to photograph the homes around us. At first I just took images from my camera showing the surrounding neighborhood. Then, as we were living in isolation it was almost like being in a bubble, so I started to experiment taking the same kind of images through an empty glass. I was intrigued by the results and liked the rounded vision that represents the new world seen from within this imaginary bubble. From then I started to represents in the same way our life as a family living in this imaginary bubble, so I introduced moment of our life from inside our home such as smart working, remote school learning, moment of fun, and fear to get out even wearing a mask.

What do you hope we as viewers take away from viewing your work?

We are living in this weird moment of our life with a worldwide pandemic which changed our reality. This imaginary bubble wants to represent the emptiness and the silence we have been living in for so long. No noise on the street, no cars, no children screaming, parks were empty. The images want to represent this but also passing from the fear of getting out of the house wearing masks, to the hope of being able to get back to our normal life soon. This hope is represented from the images showing some color of nature and looking at blossoming flowers.

How the Atelier has helped you hone your vision as an artist?

I have been taking images for a long time but probably have never seen them from a fine art point of view. This happened through the classes and the feedbacks I received from Meg and my other colleagues who pushed me to step out from my comfort zone and experiment with something different. In fact, my first attempt to a project was to photograph the emptiness of our cities with B&W images. I really liked those images, but I received comments of being a theme already seen. From then I started to work with a new mindset using some ideas I had through the class assignment, which was the abstract theme when I started to shoot through a glass. It was a complete change, but pointed me into the right direction.

Tell us what is next for you creatively.

For my next step, I am certainly using what I have learned with the Atelier, which is to identify a project and stick with it. I don’t know yet what this next project will be for me, have few ideas but are not yet defined. For sure I will retrying from taking random images not linked to a defined project or not linked into any type of stories I would like to tell. The Atelier had surely taught me how to see through my camera in a different way.

You can see more of Simone Brogini‘s work on his website. Find him on Instagram at @simonebrogini

Atelier 32 | Jeanne Widmer

Posted on September 22, 2020

We have had the pleasure of featuring Jeanne Widmer‘s work from past Atelier classes, and this series, Grace Notes, is our creative vision today. Jeanne’s lovely quiet images stem from the quiet isolation of COVID and the ability see more clearly and look more deeply at the world that surrounds us. Her work is on the walls of the Atelier 32 exhibition, and on our blog today. For more background on Grace Notes, we asked her a few questions.

Which of these images was the impetus for this series? How did it inform how you completed the series?

Like everyone, I squirreled myself indoors in mid-March, just after the Atelier 32 began, only venturing out cautiously with my camera on long daily walks in the neighborhoods of my town. Since I had previously spent three years taking photos of a large local town village development project, I was looking to challenge myself differently. Like many photographers,

I was first struck by the starkness of nearly empty streets, closed shops, buttoned up houses, and empty schoolyards, which reminded me of Todd Hido’s beautiful, often haunting work. But those photos were not enough. I began looking into the spaces for signs of life, details which made the scene come alive in a different way. I studied Helen Levitt’s precise detailed views of New York City and Matt Roberts, who, in his street photography, spoke of becoming more observant and open to the beauty of everyday scenes, finding some of his shots more powerful as diptychs or triptychs. When I first looked at my photo entitled “Spider,” reflections of intertwined tree limbs on a wet, red concrete, I knew it was the direction I wanted to follow. My eyes focused differently. I began noticing a trail of light on pavement, interesting petal filled puddles or drops of night rain on a floral leaf. I marveled at the reality that while we were all pausing and waiting in place, nature, never docile, continued its rainy march into spring.

What do you hope we as viewers take away from viewing your work?

The Covid 19 virus has destroyed many lives, robbed others of livelihoods or homes, and put families and individuals under intense pressure. At the same time, it has provided the opportunity for us to appreciate the human connections, routines and experiences which bring grace and joy into our lives. The pandemic has allowed us to pause and look closely at what essentially matters to us. Whether we look is our choice. By focusing with me on some of the smallest details in nature—in which a close up angle of an otherwise average scene is either unexpectedly satisfying and hopeful or can darken a mood by looking like the virus itself (“Molten Salmon Puddle”), I hope viewers can share and absorb a deep appreciation for the tiny moments—often hidden– that grace our lives.

How the Atelier has helped you hone your vision as an artist?

Having a 12-week course with a skilled photographer and teacher as well as talented classmates is a real motivator to develop a body of work. The challenging photographic exercises, the weekly feedback, the guest artist, and the encouragement and support in trying something new makes a real difference in developing confidence and focus. I hope to continue stretching my vision to see my world differently, whether in landscape, portrait or documentary photography. I am deeply appreciative for the Griffin professional staff’s continued dedication to excellence in its programs and exhibits supporting both established and aspiring photographers.

About Jeanne Widmer –

Growing up in Rhode Island shaped Jeanne Widmer’s attraction to worn urban locations and friendly, neighborhood businesses. An educator, counselor and writer, Widmer, from Belmont, Massachusetts, has studied photography at the Arlington Center for the Arts, the Griffin Museum and the New England School of Photography. Besides many group exhibits, she has had two solo exhibits, one which captured the vibrancy, color and dark expectancy of a single screen movie theater and another which highlighted the subtle drama and dignity of an historic, working class group of businesses. She exhibited with the Atelier 29^th class at the Griffin Museum of Photography focusing on portraits.

Find her online on Instagram @WidmerJeanne

Atelier 32 | Claudia Ruiz-Gustafson

Posted on September 18, 2020

Claudia Ruiz Gustafson is our focus today. A member of the Atelier community, her work was featured last month in the Griffin Member’s Exhibition curated by Alexa Dilworth. Still exploring a very personal story of family and home, we now see a new side of her creativity with a project inspired by the pandemic, Suspended World, for Atelier 32. An interactive work, there is a slide show and video to accompany the work now up on the walls of the Griffin. We asked her a few questions to learn more about the work.

Which of these images was the impetus for this series? How did it inform how you completed the series?

When I joined Atelier 32, my idea was to continue working on my family project. When we started the classes and the pandemic hit us and we were asked to stay home, everything changed for me. The stay at home advisory and the cancellation of my art shows and my work for the remaining of this year really hit me. I felt very depressed and was considering dropping off from the Atelier. I know Meg was very nervous moving the Atelier online and I didn’t want to disappoint her, so I decided to stay. I couldn’t produce any new work for the first couple of weeks but gradually as I was working on a “image + text’ homework, it all started to make sense. Using my body to mirror my state of mind, I followed my instincts and produced three mini bodies of work, one in each room in my house. At the end I decided to create a slideshow to show my images and poetry together set to music.

What do you hope we as viewers take away from viewing your work?

My intention with this body of work is to express the endless possibility of photography for being a vehicle of self expression, a way to reflect your inner life, your emotions and so that viewers could relate to the work in any way that is meaningful for them.

How has the Atelier helped you hone your vision as an artist?

The Atelier has been a life changing event for me, since my first one I took back in 2014 to the one I recently took. I found a mentor in Meg and Paula and a community of like minded people, many of them who have become my best friends.

Tell us what is next for you creatively.
I am waiting for the airport in Peru to open to visit my family and to continue working on a video that will be an extension of my family project.

About Claudia Ruiz Gustafson –

Claudia Ruiz Gustafson is a Peruvian-born, Massachusetts-based visual artist, educator and curator. Her work is mainly autobiographical and self-reflective; often portraying themes of femininity, memory, dreams and personal mythology. She regards image making as a powerful medium for exploring her inner world.

Claudia has exhibited in museums and galleries across the US and abroad at venues including the Danforth Art Museum, Agora Gallery, Millepiani Gallery, Galleria Valid Foto, Fountain Street Gallery, Griffin Museum of Photography, Cambridge Art Association, Concord Center for the Arts and the RI Center for Photographic Arts. She had her first solo show in 2020 at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge, MA titled Historias de Tierra y Mar (Stories of Land and Sea).

She has received grants and awards from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, the Cambridge Art Association, L.A. Photo Curator: Global Photography Awards, PX3 de la Photographie Paris, The Gala Awards, among others. Her work has been published in Fraction Media, Black & White Magazine, Shades Collective, F-Stop Magazine and has been reviewed by Artscope Magazine, Metrowest Daily News and What Will You Remember.

Claudia has self published several books that incorporate her photography and poetry. She is the owner of a portrait photography business and also teaches creative photo workshops in the Boston area. Currently she is curator and participating artist of the traveling exhibition Crossing Cultures: Family, Memory and Displacement, a multi-media project made up of artwork created by multi-cultural artists reflecting on identity and diaspora.

She holds a BA in Communications from Universidad de Lima, and a Professional Photography Certificate from Kodak Interamericana de Perú.

5% of the net income from her fine art and portrait business goes to benefit two organizations: 1. Humane Society of the US, an organization that provides direct care to more than 100,000 animals each year through their sanctuaries, veterinary programs and emergency shelters and rescues and 2. Farm Sanctuary, an organization that advocates for farmed animals, promotes laws and policies that support animal welfare, animal protection, and veganism through rescue, education, and advocacy.

See more of Claudia Ruiz-Gustafson‘s work on her website. Find her onInstagram @claudiaruizgustafson

Atelier 32 | Michael King

Posted on September 17, 2020

Mike King‘s series Fish Market is on the blog today, celebrating the artists of Atelier 32 now up on the walls of the Griffin. We asked him a few questions about the work.

Which of these images was the impetus for this series? How did it inform how you completed the series?

For Italians, food is the opera of life. It is important to use the best local ingredients. It’s important to think about it, talk about it, dream about it, dwell on minuscule details of the preparation and finally ,sit down with family and friends to partake in the communal meal. In Italy the preparation and enjoyment of good food is the metronome for life.

In these photographs (taken in 2017) of the Catania Fish Market (La Pescheria) in Sicily I portray the opening beat. For me the first photo depicts the opening operatic scene where all the players are preparing to break out in song. From there the photos depict the buyers partaking in an animated ritual of talking, joking, smelling and hand movements all aimed at securing the finest and freshest item at the lowest price.

How did the Atelier help to hone my vision as a photographer?

The Atelier has created opportunities to explore areas outside my normal photographic comfort zone. The assignments covered such diverse subjects such as abstraction, the use of words, still life, telling a story etc. These activities helped me to develop and refine new skills and expand my photographic vision.

In the past my photography activity began with stepping on an airplane taking me to some exotic destination. The Atelier has better prepared me for this post Covid-19 world in which I can now appreciate the photographic opportunities closer to home.

About Mike King –

Michael King is a retired physicist who worked in diverse fields of optical imaging. He has achievements and inventions in 3-dimensional holographic imaging, electron device photolithography and refractive eye surgery (PRK). A lifelong interest in photographic expression has led him to explore astrophotography along with underwater, travel and nature photography. In the early days of digital photography, he taught children attending summer camp to use digital cameras to develop an appreciation for nature.

He has exhibited at the Griffin Museum, two juried shows at Concord Art, and has studied at the Griffin Museum, NESOP and the deCordova Museum all located in Massachusetts. One of King’s bird photos was included in the book “Who’s Who in the Natural World” by Kay Fairweather. He also had an early hologram accepted into the Museum of Holography in Manhattan. In recent years King has used photography to explore the human condition and man’s place in the natural world.

You can see more of Mike King‘s work on his website. Follow him on Instagram @mikeking1940

Atelier 32 | Sarah Forbes

Posted on September 15, 2020

Today’s featured artist from the Griffin Atelier 32 is Sarah Forbes. These lovely quiet images from her series, Illuminating the Invisible is what we are looking at today. We asked her a few questions about her experience.

Which of these images was the impetus for this series? How did it inform how you completed the series?

Dried American Beech Leaf, 2020 was the impetus for this series. It was taken during a walk at the beginning of the pandemic. While I was excited to be out of the confinement of my house, the woods still felt dormant and dreary until my eye caught the golden glimmer of the American Beach tree leaves dangling from their branches. Intrigued, I moved closer and noticed the delicate texture of their skin and the fractal patterns that their veins created. Inspired by this experience, I continued to look closer at the natural world and find things that were often invisible to my naked eye. It allowed me to observe nature in its constant state of change and gave me some perspective on the changes going on in my own life.

How the Atelier has helped you hone your vision as an artist?

Atelier 32 was a wonderful creative community to connect with during a very strange time. I looked forward to the weekly Zoom call. Presenting my work each class and having to discuss it helped me to recognize, develop and articulate my own vision and what I was trying to convey through my images. My classmates and Meg, our instructor, were an important part of that process as their feedback and reactions would sometimes introduce something that I may not have seen on my own.

Tell us what is next for you creatively.

I plan to continue working on this series following the seasonal changes and capturing more of the nature world as it transitions. I am also enrolled in the Griffin’s Monthly Mentoring and Critique Program with Vaughn Stills, which should help me to continue to develop my artistic vision and work.

About Sarah Forbes –

Sarah Forbes is an emerging landscape photographer based in Boston, Massachusetts whose work explores the natural world and the perspective it can reveal.

Her artistic vision has been influenced by a variety of mediums and genres. Earning her BA at Connecticut College, Sarah’s childhood interest in photography became a passion as she immersed herself in the dark room and experimented with landscape, still life and portraits. A career in marketing communications introduced her to graphic design and computer presentations, which she continued to explore through her custom stationery and invitation business and multimedia shows to celebrate milestones.

Photography resurged with the arrival of her two children as she documented their adventures. As they grew to adolescents and no longer wanted to be her muse, she turned her lens to their athletic contests and captured the finesse and emotions of the players. With her passion rekindled, Sarah began taking classes at the New England School of Photography and had her first group exhibition at the Garner Center for Photographic Exhibitions in January 2020. This spring she enrolled in the Griffin Museum’s Photography Atelier 32, which culminated with an exhibition that can be seen at the Museum through September 29th or viewed online.

To see more of Sarah Forbes work, log onto her website. She is on Instagram @sforbesphotos

Atelier 32 | Adrien Bisson

Posted on September 14, 2020

Today we are pleased to present Atelier 32 member Adrien Bisson and his project – Alone Together, looking at the 90 days of sheltering in place during COVID.

Atelier 32 is on the walls of the Griffin until September 27th. The museum is open by appointment. We look forward to seeing you in a safe and healthy way to experience the talented Griffin artists community.

Which of these images was the impetus for this series? How did it inform how you completed the series?

I had been doing some still life images in my condo in mid-March of this year, just as most of us had become aware of the scale of the pandemic. It quickly became clear that “normal” life was going to be changed for some time. Over the weeks of the Atelier I began to realized that my project had to be a story about my newly-limited world in the condo. The photo called “On the sill” was one of the first that became part of the project and still reminds me of that early period of self-isolation, feeling unable to do much, while at the same time mourning the separation that my wife and I felt from my son and his family. The sill on which the herb plantings were placed was our window to the outside world, and the pots contained images of our granddaughter whom we could only see in photos and FaceTime.

What do you hope we as viewers take away from viewing your work?

Everyone has their own stories about the pandemic, and mine is just one of them. Part of my story is simply about our lives together in those first months, but another part is about my desire to make something come out of that isolation and to work with the limitations that were imposed on me.

How the Atelier has helped you hone your vision as an artist?

Working those weeks with Meg and the rest of the group really helped me think through and refine a vision for a project. It was incredibly helpful to get criticism and feedback on what I would produce each week, as well as to be able to see the work that the others were creating and having the opportunity to formulate and express my thoughts about it.

Tell us what is next for you creatively.

I have been working for a year or so on a project about the small town in which I grew up. Because my introduction to photography came at that time and place, I am working with a toy camera in black and white for this project. I am also working on a project about the Merrimack River, which starts in the White Mountains, runs along the building in which I live, and ends up emptying into the Atlantic, in Newburyport, and how it affects the daily lives of those of us while live by it.

To see more of Adrien’s work – find it online on his website, and social media.
Web site: adrienbisson.com

Instagram: @adrien_bisson

Facebook: www.facebook.com/adrienbisson

Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/AdrienBissonPhotography