Current Show at Atomic fern, of the Church of Photography_ Jean-Christian Rostagni's Gallery in Durham North Carolina

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THE CHURCH OF PHOTOGRAPHY

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CURRENT SHOW AT ATOMIC FERN

108 E. Parrish Street. Durham.

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Nostalgia for the Good Old Days

Houston, New York City, Nov 2, 2000.

15.5” wide print. Blue ash frame by artist: $600.

Unframed Print available

I found this on Houston in Manhattan on November 2, 2000, two days before the election that would have such deep implication in the world’s history. At the time those two caricatures, side by side seemed to capture the pulse of America. I have never been able to find out who did these posters, only a handful seem to have emerged on Houston. With this I started a tradition of producing one photograph every four years that to me capture the essence of the Presidential election of that cycle. This photograph is part of my series Life on Mars.

Unframed prints available, as well as this piece framed

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Bleak Omen

E.K. Powe, Durham, NC, Nov 3, 2004.

15” wide print, #1, Grey Stained curly maple frame: $3,500.

Alternate prints available in various sizes from $275.

Shot at E.K. Powe Elementary School, my neighborhood polling station, the morning following the 2004 Presidential election, a very dreary day which was not auguring of anything good.

This photograph is part of my series Life on Mars.

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Bush is a Terrorist

Fayetteville, NC, 2004.

42” wide print, #1,

Black Lacquer framed: $3,000. (This piece is virtually unique)

Shot on Mars 20, 2004 in Fayetteville, N.C. during a protest against the war in Iraq which was growing in unpopularity and many were wondering why people serving seemingly accepted to be slaughtered due to neocons idiocy.

This photograph is part of my series Life on Mars, and was relatively controversial still when it was first showed at Through This Lens gallery, here in Durham, for my show “Life on Mars, part 1” in November 2006. What a difference a few years make ...

Photographically, it is reasonably remarkable to have been graced with the ability to capture this moment with a medium format camera, as that is normally not suited for action photography like this. But because of it, the resolution is such that this type of enlargement is possible, enabling impact proportional to the cause.

Alternate prints available on order

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Lumière et Femmes de l'Ombre

Ghardaia, Algeria, January 1987.

10.” x 15” silver gelatin print. Sculpted frameby artist: $600.

This piece is litterally unique

This was shot in Ghardaia, Algeria, home of the Mozabites at the northern confines of the Sahara desert. The Mozabites are ethnically Berber, and have fled persecutions other the centuries to this oasis in the northern Sahara, which is built on a hill with concentric circles, hence the light in this photograph. Ghardaia is a point of departure into the Sahara, and the Mozabites were key trading partners with the Touaregs who were traveling across it.

The women there have the most complete veils conceivable, although its ingenuous design has a "minimalist" dimension.

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Regard Furtif sur la Nègritude

Mopti, Mali, March 1987.

12.” x 18” print, #8. Framed by artist: 1,750.

Unframed Print: $775.

This was shot Mopti Mali, the point of departure by boat or track for Timbuktu. I was there coming from Timbuktu and on my way to Bamako during my life changing trip across north and west Africa in 1987.

This print is a piezzography print, a carbon based pigment ink technique dedicated to printing black and white. I don’t use this technique anymore as I can’t keep all the printers in the world, but those prints certainly have a unique quality, and I only have a handful of them. There will be no more after those, a chance to own a rather rare print.

La defense, grande arche, cimetiere de puteaux

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Au Meilleur des Mondes

Paris, La Défense, March 1991.

30” wide print, #3. Black Lacquer framed: $2,000.

Alternate prints available in various sizes from $275.

From the Urban Legends series. This a view of "La Défense" in Paris, one that most French people have never seen, as the "Big Arche" is always shown from the other direction. As is often the case, the "back stage," behind the scene perspective, is quite enriching. This was shot 23 years ago, the view is obviously totally different now. Photography has an historic virtue.

This print and piece were created for the show "Relocations," at Greenhill Center for N.C. Art in Greensboro in September 2011, and are featured in the Rodrigo Dorfman full feature documentary film on my work, Monsieur Contraste.

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La Noce Derrière Chez Moi

Provence, 1980.

20” wide print, #1, Silver leaf frame: $450.

COLLECTOR'S ITEM: This is the only existing Cibachrome print of this photograph, and of course, Cibachrome is an extinct process from the film era.

My neighbor behind my house in "Les Michels" near Aix en Provence was marrying his son. Obviously an affair which may not have looked all that different, save for the electricity, 100 years earlier.

Archdiocese and Monastery: 918 Carolina Avenue, Durham, NC 27705. Jean-Christian Rostagni: 919 416 1111 Anytime on Appointment.

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