"Terminal," digital photomontage by MoNo (James X. Nova & Marilyn Mock) of NYC

Taking Control

The manipulated photographic image explores the realm of visual possibilities

By Phaedra Greenwood
The Taos News

We see the reflection of reality from our own individual perspectives, but artists tend to notice details that might escape the rest of us.

How they interpret these signals from the outside world is up for grabs. In the age of altered Polaroids, computer graphics and digitalized images, photographers don't have to settle for "the real thing." Now they can seize control of the raw data, spin it through their own psychological and chemical processes and project it back to us as art.

The 1999 "Manipulated Photographic Image II" is a national juried exhibition that opens with a reception Friday (March 5), 7-9 p.m., at the Fine Art Center en Taos (FACET), 1302 Paseo del Pueblo Norte.

The exhibition will also premiere online the night of the opening at www.facetnow.com.

The show, selected by lone juror Holly Roberts, called for experimental two- and three-dimensional works that incorporate the photograph as a primary element, but push its boundaries by manipulation through the use of darkroom processes, computer or by working the surfaces after the fact.

If you're tired of looking at the safe and predictable, the variety, quality and originality of the work in this show is impressive. Each artist's work is unique and distinct.

"Terminal" and "Funeral Announcement" by MoNo (James X. Nova & Marilyn Mock) are black and white computer-manipulated photographs, with text highlighted in color to call attention to the play on words. In "Funeral Announcement" a Lutheran church marquee announces, "Jesus Christ died," with the date and time of the Good Friday memorial services. "Terminal" shares a joke with the viewer -- the seedy Terminal Food Shop has apparently killed a diner, who lies in the street outside the bolted door.

In all, this is another excellent show by FACET. It runs through April 16.