The Sandspur

Issue date: 10/23/06 Section: News

Media Credit: Courtesy of MCT Campus

Media Credit: Courtesy of MCT Campus

Noted photographer Jerry Uelsmann visited Rollins and delivered a spirited lecture to a packed Bush Auditorium on the evening of October 12. His visit coincides with the Cornell Museum's exhibition of his work titled "Jerry Uelsmann Mindscapes: Earth and Sky."

Mr. Uelsmann has been a long favorite American artist in the photography medium, held in institutions including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, and Chicago Art Institute. His work, almost exclusively photographic montages evokes an almost mythical or surreal quality, combining images in entirely new contexts.

Born in Detroit, Mr. Uelsmann knew of his keen interest in photography from an early age, later studying photography at the Rochester Institute of Technology and Indiana University. He began teaching at the University of Florida shortly after graduate school, remaining a member of its faculty throughout his career.

The evening lecture was made possible by both the Thomas P. Johnson Distinguished Visiting Scholar and the work of the Cornell Museum.

The presentation began with the premiere of Daniel Reeves film exploring the work and artist theory of Mr. Uelsmann titled "Outside In." Mr. Reeves was on hand for the exhibition of the film which juxtaposes Mr. Uelsmann's photographic work with biographical elements and interview segments.

Following the film, Mr. Uelsmann took center stage to an eager audience of admirers. He discussed his intentions as an artist, focusing on the motivations that inspired his work as a body and as individual images. He spoke of his appeal to the modernist aesthetic, specifically discussing the power of the "non-rational aspect of dreams." He went on to define humans as "mythic and symbolic creatures," often capable of realizing the most fantastic images and subsequent meanings.

Mr. Uelsmann's visit and exhibition were noted as a particular treats by Luanne McKinnon, acting director of the Cornell Museum. It comes just before retrospectives in Verona, Italy and Beijing, China in 2007. Mr. Uelsmann agreed in his assessment of the opportunity, noting how wonderful it was to appear and be exhibited at an institution in his home state.

The exhibition, curated by Director McKinnon, features a variety of Mr. Uelsmann's visionary landscapes presented in large-scale. It is on view now through Decemeber 31 at the Cornell Museum. Admission to the museum is free for Rollins students, faculty, and staff.

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