Three Premier Photography Exhibits

Rarely does St Louis have a confluence of photography exhibits. Currently three such exhibits overlap in their "run times". All three are well worth seeing.

This past weekend, Good Citizen Art Gallery opened "Equivalents". The show runs March 2 through April 7, 2012. The exhibit consists of hundreds of Instamatic photographs by Jamie Kreher, a St Louis based artist.

The 829 photos are each 4" x 4" and are spread out over six tables in the gallery space.The photos are arranged seasonally from Fall, 2010, to Winter, 2012.

The square format of the photos reminds the blogger of the old Polaroid shots taken on his family vacations. In fact, one table is loaded with photos taken in Oklahoma and Texas; this blogger recognized some landmarks on old Route 66.

The public is encouraged to sit, sift, arrange and re-arrange the photos into narrative or stories. In doing so, Ms Kreher hopes to "investigate their existence as everyday objects, raising questions about preciousness, rarity, meaning, and monumentality." (Ms Kreher teaches photography at St Louis Community College, Forest Park).

Each photograph is for sale and priced at $4.00. A twenty second video loop projects 16 photos (including Ms Kreher's spouse) onto the wall in quick succession. On opening night, several dozen persons milled through the gallery or sat at the tables poring over the photos and their meanings.

The exhibit closes April 7, 2012. If you cannot make it to Good Citizen Gallery, you can view some of Ms Kreher's photos at www.jamiekreher.com.