This exhibition of two decades of alumni work is meant to keep us in touch with our past. Equally, it gives us a sense of our future.

Global conflict, the contentious identities of race and gender, the search for spiritual resolution, resonate in much of the work. Formal concerns that challenge the singularity of photography and comment upon other media such as film and sculpture are also prominent here, marking the movement away from so-called "straight photography" into a more complex, nuanced and hybrid medium.
While no group exhibition does justice to the complexity and depth of each individual's vision, nor does an exhibition of thirty-three alumni encompass the breadth of exploration articulated by some 500 graduates from the Department of Photography & Imaging, it does elucidate some of the evolving concerns that are representative of this generation.

For the generation to come? For that you will have to come back and visit our student shows later this year.

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33/20 was organized by Erin Donnelly and coordinated by Dawn Peterson and Kathryn van Steenhuyse. Special thanks to Lorie Novak, Karl Peterson, Fred Ritchin, Patricia Snavely, Matt Valentine, and Diane Bertolo. Participating alumni were selected by a panel of jurors that included faculty Diane Bertolo, Erin Donnelly, Lorie Novak, Paul Owen, Barbara Weissberger, Deborah Willis as well as students Matthew Barela, Christine Blackburn, Dave Bushee, Jason Miers and Simone Montemurno.

Please join us for a related program "Evolving Visions: 5 Photographers Speak on their Work" on Thursday, October 3, 6:30 pm in the Dean's Conference Room,
721 Broadway, 12th floor.

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Informed by the digital age—where the photograph is so central to everyday life—this alumni work produced in the past 5 years questions the nature of the image in relation to shifting and interrelated technological and social conditions. The implications of these questions are considered from multiple viewpoints and form the basis of images that cross boundaries and connect the work of the documentary establishment with artists experimenting in new media.

These images engage with broad visual histories to frame the way in which we see others and ourselves. They range from Chang W. Lee's recent photographs of Afghanistan that are classical studies in light to Diane Meyers' translations of film genre into deadpan stills that reveal the construction of history and place. Images that examine the ways in which subjectivity challenges viewers' assumptions are also included. For example, Amy Yang's unconventional headshots upset categories of race and gender while Sarah Wilson's stately portraits of individuals from Jasper, Texas reveal the strength of a community healing after the dragging death of James Byrd, Jr. Other images incorporate text and visual puns to explore the structure of visual language. They vary from the personal and symbolic narrative that runs through the prayer texts and humble interiors of Jessica Ingram's images to Remy Amezcua's spatial intervention that dislocates perspective to take on sculptural form. Of course, there are other issues to be discovered in all the work. Given their various meanings, these images reverberate within social and visual contexts that reflect back the questions raised by these citizens and artists. In turn, the diverse aesthetics of these images are invitations to the viewer to also engage with the questions.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact: Patricia Snavely

Department of Photography & Imaging
Tisch School of the Arts
New York University
721 Broadway, 8th Floor
Tel: 212-998-1930
Fax: 212-995-4068
photo.tsoa@nyu.edu
www.photo.tisch.nyu.edu

“33/20”

ALUMNI EXHIBTION SPONSORED BY
THE DEPARTMENT OF PHOTOGRAPHY & IMAGING
TO CELEBRATE 20TH ANNIVERSARY

AUGUST 29-OCTOBER 8, 2002

GALLERY HOURS: MON-FRI, 10-8PM, SAT 12-6

New York (August 19, 2002)— The new exhibition, 33/20, features diverse photographic work created by 33 alumni of the Department of Photography & Imaging, now celebrating its 20th anniversary. The exhibition presents new work in contemporary photography, such as the photojournalism of Chang W. Lee whose Pulitzer Prize-winning images were created for the New York Times; the documentary work of Meryl Levin whose book on medical practices, Anatomy of
Anatomy has been supported by the Open Society Institute; the Caribbean landscapes of Fulbright Scholar Wyatt Gallery; and photographs by Fischerspooner band member and performer Jeremiah Clancy, among the work of other distinguished alumni.

The 33/20 alumni exhibition will take place in the street-level Gulf and Western Gallery and eighth-floor Photo Center Gallery at the School, located at 721 Broadway. A reception will be held on Thursday, September 19, from 6-8 pm.

33/20 features the work of the following 33 alumni:
Rémy Amezcua, Terry Boddie, Andrew Bordwin, Shannon Castleman, Alan Chin,
Jeremiah Clancy, Melissa Kay Cohen, Allison Davies, Rose DeSiano, Serene Ford, Nichole Frocheur, Wyatt Gallery, Jeff Harris, Craig Harris, Jessica Ingram, Sharon LaBella-Lindale, Chang W. Lee, Meryl Levin, Pedro Linger Gasiglia, Diane Meyer, Peter Orth, Karl Peterson, Rachel Randolph, Kirstyn Russell, Melanie Schiff, Adam Schwartz, Emily Shur, Hank Thomas, Jody Waldron, Grant Worth, Sarah Wilson, Kristiina Wilson, and Amy Yang.

The imagery selected for 33/20 represents a selection of contemporary photographic work being produced today which ranges from documentary projects to computer-generated imagery. A variety of photo-based work is represented from text-based visual puns to images that critique genres of landscape and film, to soulful portraits and penetrating projects on health care and incarcerated youth. The show also includes video as well as published materials of alumni.

Lorie Novak, Chair of the Department of Photography & Imaging says: “The outstanding work of our alumni in not just limited to their role as image-makers but extends also to their roles as citizens and artists. Their work embraces a wide range of disciplines and fields including human rights, education, and performance.”

The 33/20 alumni exhibition was organized by Erin Donnelly, adjunct faculty and Associate Director of Visual & Media Arts at the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, in collaboration with the Department of Photography & Imaging. A panel of jurors including faculty members Diane Bertolo, Erin Donnelly, Lorie Novak, Paul Owen, Barbara Weissberger, and Deborah Willis and current students Matthew Barela, Christine Blackburn, David Bushee, Jason Miers, and Simone Montemurno selected the participating alumni.

About the Department of Photography & Imaging

The Department of Photography & Imaging at the Tisch School of the Arts, New York University, is a four-year BFA program. Its curriculum fosters seeing, thinking, doing, reflecting and contextualizing, with attention to ethics and responsibility to society at large. It is a diverse department embracing multiple perspectives, with some 500 alumni.

For more information, call (212) 998-1930 or email
photo.tsoa@nyu.edu.

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