VISUAL ARTS + MUSEUMS

DiverseWorks presents Before (During) After: Louisiana Photographers Respond to Katrina and Under-Standing Water. On view Friday, September 10-October 23, 1010;Opening Reception: Friday, September 10, 2010, 6-9pm.

In conjunction with this exhibit, join DiverseWorks for a symposium to discuss the impact of Hurricane Katrina on some of the artists from Before (During) After along with scholars: Director/photographer Elizabeth Kleinveld; Art historian/curator Tony Lewis, Folklorist/oral historian Carl Lindahl, and artist Jan Gilbert. The panel will be moderated by visual sociologist Tracy Xavia Karner and a question & answer session with selected photographers and installation artists will conclude the Symposium.

Symposium for Before (During) After
Date: Saturday, September 11, 2010, 1-4pm
Location: DiverseWorks ArtSpace
1117 East Freeway
Houston, Texas 77002

Ticket information: Free Admission and open to the public.

DiverseWorks kicks off the 2010-2011 season with an exhibition and symposium that commemorates the 5th Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Before (During) After and the accompanying Under-standing Water provide a visual narrative of how one of the U.S.’s largest natural disasters transformed the lives of artists from Southeast Louisiana.

Before (During) After specifically explores the changes in subject matter, media, and technique from the work created before the storm to after in an effort to investigate how shared experience is individually captured, filtered and re-conveyed. Photographers participating in Before (During) After include: Eric Julian, Elizabeth Kleinveld, Rowan Metzner, David Rae Morris, Thomas Neff, Samuel Portera, Frank Relle, Jennifer Shaw, Mark J. Sindler, Zack Smith, Jonathan Traviesa, and Lori Waselchuck.

Under-Standing Water features sculptural installations by Rondell Crier, Jana Napoli and Rontherin Ratliff with a monumental photographic work by Jan Gilber, Debra Howell and Krista Jurisich. The works connect viewers to the perceptions, experiences, and memories of six artists whose lives were impacted by the storm.

Running concurrently in flickerlounge, DiverseWorks in partnership with Aurora Picture Show presents Brent Joseph’s A Loud Color and YO-TVs Still Standing, two films that explore challenges faced by storm survivors as they attempt to rebuild their lives.

About DiverseWorks ArtSpace:  DiverseWorks is a non-profit art center in Houston, Texas dedicated to presenting new visual, performing, and literary art. DiverseWorks is a place where the process of creating art is valued and where artists can test new ideas in the public arena. By encouraging the investigation of current artistic, cultural and social issues, DiverseWorks builds, educates, and sustains audiences for contemporary art.

Pictured above:

Artist: David Rae Morris
After: Oiled Pelicans
Medium: Archival Digital Print
Size: 22x14.5” image on 24x18.75” paper, framed 28x20”

Pictured below:

Artist: Lori Waselchuck
During: Waterline, Lakeview
Medium: Archival Digital Print
Size: 12-5/8x34” image on 24x40” paper, framed 19x40”

Artist: David Rae Morris
After: Mr. Herbert Gettridge, 83, at His House in the Lower Ninth Ward
Medium: Archival Digital Print
Size: 15.5x22” image on 20x24” paper, framed 22x28”

Artist: Rowan Metzger
Before: Untitled 4 (Respiro)
Medium: Archival Digital Print
Size: 14.5x22” image on 20x24” paper, framed 20x28”

Artist: Zack Smith
After: Blair at St. Vincents, New Orleans
Medium: Archival Digital Print
Size: 22x27.75” image on 24x30” paper, framed 28x34”

Artist: Sam Portera
During: Desks
Medium: Archival Digital Print
Size: 22x27.25” image on 24x31” paper, framed 28x34”

Artist: Jonathan Traviesa
After: HELP, One Year Later, (a Victor & Juliet collaborative project [with Valerie Massimi])
Medium: Archival Digital Print
Size: 13.75x22” image on 19.75x24” paper, framed 20x28”

Artist: Jennifer Shaw
After: In Spite of It All There’s No Place Like Home
Medium: Archival Digital Print
Size: 22x22” image on 27x24” paper, framed 28x28”

Artist: Frank Relle
During: Clouet
Medium: Archival Pigment Print
Size: 14.50x22” image on 17.75x24” paper, framed 20x28”