A Different Angle

By Elin Spring

History is written by the victors, as the saying goes. And throughout history, those who have challenged the status quo often paid dearly. But lately we’ve witnessed both political and artistic disruptions to long prevailing viewpoints. Now at Gallery Kayafas in Boston, two solo exhibits challenge traditional representation: in Shawn Bush’s Angle of Draw, juxtaposed fragments of 20th century propaganda and original photographic interventions question the mighty struggle of white American men to retain environmental and cultural dominance; in Cousins, Kristen Joy Emack expands on the loving kinship and natural intimacy of growing Black American girls to reveal an alternative to the predominant white narratives of the photographic canon. On view through July 24th, 2021, Artist Receptions will be held tomorrow, Saturday June 19th from 3.00 – 6:00pm and on Friday, July 9th from 5:30 – 8:00pm.

“The Ploy” 2019 from the series Angle of Draw by Shawn Bush, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.

“Sublimated Notion” 2020, from the series Angle of Draw by Shawn Bush, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.

“Angle of Draw” is a description of destruction. The dictionary defines the term as the angle at which the collapsing earth spreads out from the end of an underground work area to the edge of the natural landscape, as in the fallout from extraction mining. Shawn Bush’s photographs are pointed critiques of the environmental impact of unfettered conquest on the part of white American men and their strenuous efforts to maintain accumulated wealth and power. This may not be obvious when confronting Bush’s images for the first time, but the dynamics of his large installations are as exciting as they are complex.

Installation view of “Subjugation Archive” 2020 and “After David (negative)” 2020, from the series Angle of Draw by Shawn Bush, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston (Photo by Elin Spring).

Installation view of “Horizon (Reach)” 2020, “Reservoir Simulation” 2020, and “Voting Machine” 2021, from the series Angle of Draw by Shawn Bush, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston (Photo by Elin Spring).

In “Angle of Draw,” Shawn Bush crafts collages in a 4”x 5” view camera and builds relationships in arrangements on the gallery walls using photographs from the acquired archives of a white male prospector for gold in the American West during the early 1900’s and a San Francisco Bay area/Detroit propaganda photographer active during the 1960’s and ‘70’s. In layering, juxtapositions and careful groupings of landscapes and studio shots, Bush constructs narratives that reflect men’s violent interactions with the natural environment. His use of rigid angles, sometimes glaring lighting and menacing insinuations intentionally stir disquiet to infer “the deteriorating empire of white maleness.”

“Silence” 2020, from the series Angle of Draw by Shawn Bush, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.

“Subsequent Cartography” 2020, from the series Angle of Draw by Shawn Bush, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.

“Love, Cambridge, MA” 2017, from the series Cousins by Kristen Joy Emack, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.

“Gaze, Cambridge, MA” 2019, from the series Cousins by Kristen Joy Emack, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.

There is an entire genre devoted to family photography, but Kristen Joy Emack has achieved something exceptional in her long-term series “Cousins.” Candid photographs of her own mixed-race daughter in natural interactions with two Black cousins expose a perspective we rarely, if ever, witness. Prevailing photographic viewpoints of Black Americans tend to highlight issues like poverty and dissent rather than allowing us glimpses inside family relationships. Dawoud Bey’s powerfully empathetic portraits remain outside family limits. LaToya Ruby Frazier’s documentary series “The Notion of Family” is an arresting intergenerational study of her own family, emphasizing strong socio-economic crosscurrents. Gordon Parks spent an entire lifetime attempting to portray Black families in a way that would allay white fears and prejudice. In “Cousins,” Emack’s beguiling, nuanced images of three growing girls focus entirely on family ties and entice viewers with their unguarded intimacy.

“Touch, Killingworth, CT” 2015, from the series Cousins by Kristen Joy Emack, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.

“Braids, Cambridge, MA” 2019, from the series Cousins by Kristen Joy Emack, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.

Emack’s framing is usually close-up, excluding specific environmental clues that might serve as distractions from her subjects. Instead, she capitalizes on line, pattern and repetition as dominant elements in compositions that guide our focus to the emotions and relationships of the cousins. In “Touch,” the water’s concentric ripples intertwine and emanate from two hand-clasped girls, mirroring the endurance of their bond. The lyrical dance of identical hairstyles and bowed heads in “Braids” celebrates unity and connection. The installation intersperses images of the cousins at various ages, to strong effect. The cadence of moods from pensive to playful accentuates how the girls have remained unfazed, often seemingly unaware of Emack’s presence, a quality that threatens to change as they naturally become more self-conscious in their teen years. Because representation was not Emack’s initial intention for this work, it remains a sub-text, a profound stowaway message in this ongoing tribute to familial love and devotion.

“Crown, Cambridge, MA” 2019, from the series Cousins by Kristen Joy Emack, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.

Although the photographs in Bush’s “Angle of Draw” and Emack’s “Cousins” are both shot in Black & White, the imagery could not appear more different. Bush’s installations of hard-edged, sometimes jarring composites of landscapes and studio work in overlapping frames starkly contrast with Emack’s candid portraits of playful, loving kinship. Nonetheless, both exhibits address the ways we are accustomed to seeing the established world order and ask us, in very different and refreshing ways, to reconsider the status quo.

For more information about this exhibit and associated programming, go to: https://www.gallerykayafas.com/

Feature Image: “Black is Beautiful, Old Saybrook, CT.” 2021 from the series Cousins by Kristen Joy Emack, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.