Pearl to Exhibit In "Envisioning Cleveland" Show

"Crooked River Pyramids" © Stuart Pearl 2007

It's been years since I’ve submitted photographs to exhibitions and competitions. Raising a family and working at my regular job has occupied much of my time. But recent photographic projects have paid off.

Last week I was notified that four of my submissions to the “Envisioning Cleveland” photo competition had been accepted. Some of my recent “Flats” images will be displayed alongside works of other photographers in the atrium gallery of the Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban affairs at Cleveland State University.

The Envisioning Cleveland exhibit will open with a public reception on Thursday September 27, 2007 from 5:30 – 7:30. The Levin College of Urban Affairs is located at 1717 Euclid Avenue. The building is on the northeast corner of Euclid and E. 17th Street.

A total of 175 photographs were submitted online to the Envisioning Cleveland competition. The judges chose 40 works representing 26 local photographers. These selections will be displayed in the Levin College gallery.

"The Brothers Grim" © Stuart Pearl 2007

My selected work features scenes of downtown Cleveland and the nearby industrial Flats. All images were shot within the past six months as I tried to capture the sun's early morning and late afternoon impact on the urban landscape. Everything was shot with a digital SLR, processed through photoshop and then output to an Epson R1800 printer.

The picture shown at the top of this article , “Crooked River Pyramids” was shot before 8 A.M. shortly after it had stopped raining. The downpour had created fascinating reflections both on the river and among the gravel yards. It felt like I was looking down on a Tonka Truck playground of bridges, trucks and boats.

“The Brothers Grim” was shot in the same area as Crooked River Pyramids and the title refers to spray painted grafitti on the concrete. It had been an overcast morning and I was waiting for the sun to break through to illuminate the bridge pylon. Timing is everything; patience can be boring.

© Stuart Pearl 2007

“Afternoon Fog Over the Inner Harbor “ was one of those Cleveland weather anomalies that we experienced this past May. It was also featured in an earlier article. Taken from a hill next to the Great Lakes Science Center, I was experimenting with a circular polarizing filter and a new ultra wide angle lens I’d just purchased.

“New Geometry against an Old Theme” was shot just a block from where I work downtown. Again, the low angle morning light generated perfect contrast and shadow across the RTA Train Station.

If you are in the city that day we hope you can make the opening of the show. While the web makes it possible to share art across the world in seconds, it is not the same as viewing a matted and framed 15"x10" photographic print in a properly lit gallery setting.

© Stuart Pearl Photography