Santa Maria Sun / Art

Lenses squared

BY SHELLY CONE

By the way See “6x6: A Photographic Exploration” on display through Oct. 22 at Betteravia Gallery in Santa Maria’s Betteravia Government Building.

Featured artists include David Passage, Karen Carson, Tim Webb, Lynn Andrews, David Stroup, and Lori Bell.

Their work, though diverse in style and content, shares the unifying theme of exploration into a square format, redefining the context of the image.

Rose Karen Carson created this black-and-white sepia photograph last spring with an all-plastic camera and lens. PHOTO COURTESY SANTA BARBARA ARTS COMMISSION

“This entire series was shot this past spring with my Diana F+ Camera, which is an all-plastic camera with a plastic lens,” Carson said in an artist’s statement. “The images were taken with black-and-white film, printed, and toned sepia in a traditional darkroom by me. This analog, low-fidelity style of photography is appealing in that, as the photographer, I must be willing to relinquish control (this camera is quite basic with few knobs or settings), and yet be content to capture the moment and its interpretation of reality.”

Papyrus Lori Bell uses a vintage plastic camera for her photographs. PHOTO COURTESY SANTA BARBARA ARTS COMMISSION

“I use vintage plastic cameras for my photographs,” Bell wrote. “This one was taken with a Diana-like Banier camera from the ’60s on expired 120 film.”

Cactus Wall For this image, David Passage used a 15 1/2-inch gelatin silver print bled-mounted to a quarter-inch foam core. PHOTO COURTESY SANTA BARBARA ARTS COMMISSION

“This is my favorite image,” Bell wrote. “It is from Mission San Miguel. It is a 15 1/2-inch gelatin silver print. It is bled-mounted to 1/4-inch foam core. I love the square because it is so neutral—no vertical, no horizontal. There is a tendency for things to fall toward the center, and one has to work to overcome the centripetal force of the square medium. It is a formal game, and the rules are simple and severe.”

Arts Editor Shelly Cone is a total L7. Contact her at scone@santamariasun.com.