By Elin Spring
We’ve gone to the dogs. In fact, that happened so many eons ago that no one can properly recall when we humans surrendered our hearts to our canine companions. The Griffin Museum of Photography in Winchester, MA is featuring two endearing solo exhibits that highlight the often amusing ways dogs are woven into our days and through our lives: Rick Ashley’s Cani di Roma and Nancy Baron’s Palm Springs Modern Dogs at Home will be on view (by appointment only) through October 23rd, 2020. A free online Artist Talk and Reception is being held on Sunday, October 4th at 7:00pm Eastern.
From the series Cani di Roma by Rick Ashley, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
Commercial and fine art photographer Rick Ashley has been turning his lens toward the street for forty-five years, a practice that continues to spur him on at home on Boston’s North Shore and in his adopted second city, Rome. “The ever-present dogs in Rome have always found their way into my photographs, but in the last few years the dogs have become principle actors.”
From the series Cani di Roma by Rick Ashley, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
From the series Cani di Roma by Rick Ashley, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
From the series Cani di Roma by Rick Ashley, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
In the museum’s Griffin Atelier Gallery, forty-four of Ashley’s Cani di Roma (Dogs of Rome) are presented in horizontal 5”x 7”, unframed, B&W prints parading in four horizontal runs that recall lengthy Roman streetscapes. Two vertical runs reflect terrain with more steps and hills. Ashley’s B&W capture, along with the identical size and orientation of his prints, provide a unifying backdrop that allows his keen eye for disarming perspectives to seize our attention. He assumes a dog’s eye view, or conversely, peers down from human height or takes a wide-angle view, often to humorous effect. His dogs usually share the frame with their human companions, but Ashley notably cameos the position and gesture of his canine subjects, accentuating their comical antics and irresistible personalities. So many of Ashley’s images are gems. They provoke a torrent of emotion that emphasizes (if we needed it) how grateful we should be for the dogs in our lives. And on top of that, Ashley offers a much-needed junket to Rome.
From the series Cani di Roma by Rick Ashley, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
From the series Cani di Roma by Rick Ashley, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
From the series Cani di Roma by Rick Ashley, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
“Tippi” 2018, from the series Palm Springs Modern Dogs at Home by Nancy Baron, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
In the Griffin Gallery, Nancy Baron’s Palm Springs Modern Dogs at Home stand, sit and stay as spirited tributes to the ways dogs humanize our households. After many years (and two monographs) spent visually venerating homes of mid-century modern American design, Baron has turned her attentions to their canine inhabitants: “The dogs of the house often follow me around and wander into my camera frame, adding warmth and life to the image as they do to their homes. (Here), I have put these precious pups in the spotlight where they belong.”
“Ella” 2018, from the series Palm Springs Modern Dogs at Home by Nancy Baron, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
“Winston and Peanut” 2017, from the series Palm Springs Modern Dogs at Home by Nancy Baron, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
Baron’s bewitching portraits are as much a treat for the soul as they are for the eye, and that’s saying a lot. The carefully curated domestic spaces of Palm Springs’ famous homes become the foundation upon which Baron fashions her dynamic arrangements with coordinated palettes and pooches “that are as lovingly groomed and cared-for as their surroundings.” It is the interaction of her subjects with these surroundings that give Baron’s compositions their sophisticated flair. “Charlie’s” black and white coat mirror the house’s exterior, while a pink collar picks up on the Caddie convertible in the drive, the front door, some planters, and a couple of fab pink flamingoes. In Baron’s formal compositions – conspicuously absent of their owners – her subjects take on a statuesque, elevated stature. Each becomes an integral part of the design, describing a sense of panache and belonging, one that insinuates that no house is a home without a dog in it.
“Charlie” 2018, from the series Palm Springs Modern Dogs at Home by Nancy Baron, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
“Cooper” 2018, from the series Palm Springs Modern Dogs at Home by Nancy Baron, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
To view or order Nancy Baron’s new monograph, Palm Springs Modern Dogs at Home, go to: https://nancybaron.bigcartel.com/product/palm-springs-modern-dogs-at-home
Feature Image: “Happy” 2018, from the series Palm Springs Modern Dogs at Home by Nancy Baron, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
To learn more about the free, online Artist Talk and Reception on Sunday, October 4th, 2020 at 7:00pm, go to: https://griffinmuseum.org/event/baron_ashleytalk-reception/
To make an appointment to see these exhibits in person at the Griffin Museum in Winchester, MA, go to: https://griffinmuseum.org/exhibitions/
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