The Grunwald Gallery in conjunction with the IU Eskenazi Museum of Art, is pleased to present the exhibition and symposium A Shared Elegy. The exhibit will open on October 13 and continue through November 16, 2017. A 112-page book, A Shared Elegy will be published and distributed through Indiana University Press.
Exhibition: October 13, 2017 through November 16, 2017
Symposium Events: Friday, October 13, 2017
Panel Discussion: 3:00 - 4:30pm | Fine Arts 015 - Featuring Emmet Gowin, Elijah Gowin, James Nakagawa, and Yoshiko Suzuki. Moderator Joel Smith.
McKinney Visiting Artist Lecture: Emmet Gowin: 5:00 - 6:00pm | Fine Arts 015
Opening Reception: 6:00 - 8:00pm | Grunwald Gallery
A Shared Elegy presents the work of four photographers connected by family ties. Osamu James Nakagawa and his uncle, Takayuki Ogawa, and Elijah Gowin and his father, Emmet Gowin, present unique but overlapping visions recording family histories. Nakagawa, like his uncle Ogawa, grew up in Japan and draws upon his country’s traditions and the practice of honoring elders. Family heritage and home in Virginia have inspired the Gowins to make photographs that depict the intimate and hallowed nature of the world. These photographs compel us to reflect on our own lineage and consider our place in the progression of generations and the cycle of life.
Cultural differences can be perceived in these images, however, there are many similarities surrounding important life events. We see normal experiences typical of every family: birth, the raising of children, connection with home, aging, and illness and death. While there are difficult images in the exhibition, the artists do not shy away from these moments. The inclusion of these works, along with those that are joyful and effusive, create a complete story about the universal cycle of life and death.
Emmet Gowin is an esteemed photographer known worldwide for his deeply spiritual photographs of his wife’s extended family in rural Virginia. His pictures reflect a time gone by but also the universality of the life experience that is relevant to every family. Elijah Gowin and Osamu James Nakagawa exhibit internationally and have made the theme of family connections their life’s work. Takayuki Ogawa is known for his images of New York in 1969. A series of self-portraits taken throughout his battle and recovery from cancer during 1995-97 will be included in this exhibition. Ogawa died in 2008.
EXHIBITION AND SYMPOSIUM SPONSORS
The exhibition and symposium are made possible by the College Arts and Humanities Institute, the Grunwald Fund, the McKinney Visiting Artist Series, the Center for Integrative Photographic Studies, the School of Art, Architecture + Design at Indiana University, and the IU Eskenazi Museum of Art. Additional support comes in part from David and Martha Moore, David H. Jacobs, Nancy and Bill Hunt, Susan Thrasher, and Emmet and Edith Gowin.