<p>Time has always been an implicit subject of photography, and in J. John Priolas movingly beautiful still-lifes it becomes explicit, visible, as never before. Each image gives the object at its centera pair of bronzed baby shoes, a mended dishtowel, a puff of smokethe clear, intense scrutiny usually reserved for portraiture. These still-lifes, however, are portraits of absent lives and passing time. Once Removed brings together three stylistically distinct, thematically related series of these impeccably crafted images. The first gathers together evocative objects that speak of hope, desire, and the fleeting moments of paradise in every life. The second depicts objects whose scars, stains, and cracks testify to now vanished bodies, passions, householdsredeeming this flotsam and jetsam in photographs which brilliantly demonstrate that objects can bear witness to invisible ideas and emotional truths. The last series continues to pursue time itself and, like the other two, triumphs at photographys most difficult task: depicting what cannot be seen. In this case ephemerality itself is depicted in images of things whose lifespan was often little longer than the time it took to make the photograph.</p>

Once Removed: Portraits

Arts & Photography

Priola, J. John

Photography & Video

Arena Editions

<p>A comprehensive insight into the work of the artist spanning 20 years from several different series\nJ. John Priola’s second monograph, features work from twelve different series made over twenty years time and investigates the natural and un-natural world. It includes essays from Rita Bullwinkel, Claire Daigle and a conversation with Alec Soth. There is a beauty and perversity at work in this collection of images. Plants carry stories and offer information about their caretakers, perseverance, and what nature and nurture hold. The images are often portraits and evidence of what was and can no longer be seen. Photography is magic in this way, deceptively acting as a document, yet personal, seen but beyond reach. While there are different formal approaches to image making, the aspirations remain the same. Following the title Natural Light, all images – even seemly studio set ups – are done with natural light, and are in color and black and white. Shifts in scale and layout show the diverse ways to look at our world and how we live in it.</p>

Natural Light

Kehrer Verlag

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Priola, J. John. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Priola, J. John

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Priola, J. John. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Once Removed: Portraits

Natural Light