Paul Owen
Night Light Series
Photography is the recording of light. Yet these pictures are as much about the absence of light as the presence of it. The darkness leaves enough to the imagination to give the pictures a quiet mystery. They are as quiet as the country night, almost surreal, flat, the appearance of theater sets.
Generally photography is an activity of instantaneous recording. The Night Light series involved exposures that ranged from 5 to 35 minutes. This experience makes one conscious of the process of film recording the light. Although these are still images they are a record of perhaps twenty minutes of time. This amount of time allowed me to enter the photograph without being visually recorded. At times I would sit in the scene for a minutes or so, never quite long enough to leave a visual indication. These photographs became a metaphysical exercise of my actually being in the pictures (being recorded for a period of time) but not appearing, only my spirit. so-to-speak. If an image of myself had ever appeared the picture would have been ruined, becoming a common visual gimmick.
The photographs where taken in the Catskill region of upstate New York using a 4 X 5 view camera. All exposures were made by testing and educated guess because there was not enough light to use a meter.
The Night Light photographs have been exhibited as prints in galleries as well as projected images in a number of theater performances in New York City.
... Paul Owen
Feet Series
The feet photographs are ground level glimpses of everyday life.
I find it interesting how much one can know of a person by seeing only their feet.
The separation of the foreground from background via selective sepia toning, gives the images a three dimensional effect. The images are toned silver gelatin prints in limited edition of five prints.
EDUCATION
M.A. New York University, June 1980
B.F.A. Minneapolis College of Art and Design, May 1973
EMPLOYMENT
Associate Professor of Photography, Department of Photo and Imaging / Department of Film and Television, Tisch School of the Arts, New York University 9/1973 to present.
Acting Chair, Department of Photography, Tisch School of the Arts, New York University, spring and summer 1987.
Founding Director, Photo Center Gallery, Tisch School of the Arts, 1979 1992.
Instructor of Photography, Colorado Mountain College, summer, 1974-1975.
Photo Lab Coordinator, Minneapolis College of Art and Design, 1972-1973.
Technical Assistant, National Video Festival, Minneapolis, summer 1972.
Media Center Photographer, Minneapolis College of Art and Design, 1970 1972
COLLECTIONS
Museum Of Modern Art, New York
Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris
Museum of the City of New York
E.M.M. Warburg Collection,
New York
New York University Collection, Grey Art Gallery, New York.
Pacific Telesis Collection, California
Astor Collection, England.
Vietnam
Veterans Art Museum, Chicago
Fortis, NYC
Delaware County Historical Association
Harley Davidson Collection, WI
Witter Agricultural Museum, Syracuse, NY
Barclays Capital
PUBLICATIONS
Photographs published in:
The New York Times
The New York Daily News
The New York Post
The Colorado Daily Camera
The New Jersey Star Ledger
Village Voice
TDF New York On Stage, 3/83
Dance Magazine, Dec.87
Dance Pages Magazine, Fall.87
Phoenix Magazine
Youth Magazine - national monthly mag. based in Wash D.C. 11/99 Article includes my documentary photographs of the Seargent Henry Johnson Youth Leadership Academy, South Kortright ,N.Y. , The story, by David Krayicek, is about the problems and questionable effectiveness of juvenile boot camps.
Epiphany, (premiere issue) sp/summer 2004
American Photographer, January 1988
The Polaroid Newsletter for Photographic Educatiion, sp.86 Vol. III #2.
Vietnam-Reflexes and Reflections, Abrams (book) 1998
Dance Design, by Stewart Hodes (book)
Various exhibition catalogs
EXHIBITIONS
Group show: Photography & Imaging Faculty, Tisch School of the Arts, NYU, NY., Oct./Nov. 2004 05 - 06.
Group show: Harley Davidson100 anniversaryPhotography Exhibit, traveling exhibition, 2003
Group show: Upon Good Land, Daniel P. Witter Agricultural Museum, Syracuse, N.Y. (8/2000 8/2002)
Group show: Biennial Photography Exhibition, Fenimore Art Museum, 11/1-12/31/00, Cooperstown, NY
Group show: Andes Hunting Tavern Museum, Andes Society For History and Culture,: (Columbus Day through Dec 31, 2000)
Group show: This Valley Use To Be All Farms, Delaware Historical Association, Delhi, N.Y. 11/21/98 - present. I made the contemporary photographs of the multi-generation family farms to go along with the historical photographs and artifacts.
One person show: RURAL LIFE - Family Farms, Delaware County Historic Association Museum, 11/22/98 4/99
One person show: IMPRESSIONS OF INDIA, Quarter Moon, Delhi, N.Y. 5 - 6 / 98.
Group show: PICTURE THIS . . . WAR, The National Vietnam Veterans Art Museum, Chicago, 5/9/97 - 7/15/97.
One person show: INDIA, The West Kortright Center, West Kortright, NY (9 - 10 / 97)
Group show: This Valley Use To Be All Farms, Delaware County Historic Association Museum.
Group show: NYU Tisch School of the Arts Faculty Annual Show 1974 present.
Represented by Witkin Gallery, N.Y.C. 1986 gallery closing 1997 .
Group show: REFLEXES & REFLECTIONS, The National Vietnam Veterans Art Museum, Chicago, permanent exhibit, 8/25/96 Inaugural exhibition.
Group show: PHOTOGRAPHY FACULTY SHOW, TSOA, NYU, 10/96
One person show: Night Light Quarter Moon , Delhi, N.Y. 5 7 / 1995.
Group show: Claire Fontaine Gallery, Coustellet, France 9 10 / 1994.
Group show: Flowers, Witkin Gallery, N.Y.C. 7 8 / 1994.
One person show: Vestiges de la Vallee du Calavon, Claire Fontaine Gallery, Coustellet, France 8/15 9/31/1993.
Group show: Compassion, Hamiltons Galleries Ltd. London,, 5/10/1993
One person show:
there are no heroes, Foreman Gallery, Hartwick College, Oneonta, N.Y., 1 2 / 1993
Group show, Photography Faculty show, TSOA, NYU, 10/25 - 11/27/93.
Group show: Catskill Landscapes, Kubiak Gallery, Oneonta, N.Y. 11/ 1992.
Group show: Illumination, by Pfizer, Inc. from the Art Advisory Service of the Museum of Modern Art, N.Y. 1992
Group show: (Drawings) Selections from the N.Y.U. Art Collection, Grey Art Gallery, NY. 2/5-3/2/91
Two person show: Two, Witkin Gallery, NY, 6/21-7/23/88.
Group show: Photogrpahic Survey 1900-1988, Madison Gallery, Ct. 1-2/88.
Group show: CityWork, City Gallery, NY. 7/12-8/19/88
Group show: Witkin Gallery, 10/2312/2/86; 1/13-2/21/87
One person show: Simon Gallery, Montclair, NJ. 1/12 - 2/4/84
Group show: History of Video Arts, Museum of Modern Art, NY. 1983 (Documentary Photographs)
Group show: The Brooklyn Bridge, 80 Papers Gallery, 5/20 6/30/83
One person show: The Simon Gallery, Montclair, NJ. 11/17 12/24/81
Group show: 5 Wiener Internationale Biennale, Erweiterte Fotografie, Vienne, 10/21 11/21/81
Group show: Works on Paper, 80 Papers Gallery, NY. 6/5 6/30/81.
Group show: PhotoFusion, Pratt Manhattan Center Gallery, NY. 1/12 1/31/80.
One person show: Scottsdale Center for the Arts, AZ. 9/18 10/19/80.
One person show: Marymount Manhattan Center, NY. 3/23 3/26/80.
One person show: Morgan Gallery, Kansas City, KS. 2/1 2/23/80.
One person show: Louis K. Meisel Gallery, NY. June 1977.
Group show: Soho Photographic Foundation, NY. May 1975
One person show: Exposure Gallery, NY. 5/1 6/2/74
Group show: Hamiltons Galleries Ltd., London
RELATED EXPERIENCE
Juried Unidad Photo Exhibit Cross-cultural awareness through the eyes of others Winter 2004 2005. Exhibited at Kimmel Center, NYU.
Translation of my writing, Story of Lan, with photographs was included as part of the production of MISS SAIGON, 2004 05, Goteborg Opera, Sweden. Premiere October 16, 2004.
Interviewed for video documentary honoring Sooni Taraporevala.
Designed and produced historic calendars for Bovina Historical Society, 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2003.
Presentation/lecture: VIETNAM - From Different Perspectives, for New York University Scholars 3/1/02
Presentation/lecture: VIETNAM - From Different Perspectives.for two Photo Historyclasses (Shelley Rice / Debra Willis) 3/7/02
Presentation/lecture: Visual Memory, I Remember Viet Nam. AMERICAN PHOTOGRAPHY INSTITUTE. Graduate Student Seminar. June 1996.
Slide presentation/lecture: Vietnam, A Soldiers Perspective, Delaware Academy, Delhi, NY. 1997.
Projection for Care Less Love, a play by Len Jenkins, Soho Rep Theatre, NYC. 11/4 12/5/93
Freelance photographer, selected commercial clients include: Estee Lauder, Charles of the Ritz, Elizabeth Arden, General Foods, A.B.C. Television, Ger du Bois, Young and Rubica, 1979 90.
Multi-media production in conjunction with Marleen Pennison and Dancers Company, presented at La Mama Theatre, NYC, 1/25 2/5/84.
Multi-media production for Dance in New York, The Company, performed, Riverside Dance Festival, NYC 1/21, 23, 24/82.
40 Color photographs exhibited, Krishna Reddy, A Retrospective Bronz Museum, NY 11/5/81 2/28/82.
Produced, Directed and Edited commercial film for Minneapolis Society of Fine Arts, 30 seconds, broadcast on ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS Mpls. MN. 4/72.
Produced, Directed and Edited experimental color video tpe at KTCA-TV, shown at Walker Art Center, Minneapolis 9/6 7/72.
Produced, Directed and Edited 16mm experimental documentary, Energy Works, shown aat Walker Art Center Experimental Film Series 11/24/71. Ann Arbor Film Festival, 1972, The Electric Gallery, Toranto, 11/16 22/71, San Francisco Art Institute Festival, 1973.
GRANTS AND AWARDS
Senior Faculty Development Grant, Tisch School of the Arts, NYU 1996.
For a analog and digital book project,
Senior Faculty Development Grant, Tisch School of the Arts, NYU 2004.
Rotary International, Group Study Exchange, to Mumbai, India.
