Artist’s Reception: Elizabeth Bick: The Center of the Circle

Elizabeth Bick: The Center of the Circle
opening reception: Saturday, August 24, 5-7 pm
on view: August 23–October 6, 2024

Artist’s Statement:
I have been photographing at the Pantheon in Rome, Italy, on and around the Summer Solstice for eleven consecutive years. This iconic site provides a unique platform for self-presentation, with a dramatic spotlight effect during the summer solstice. Year after year, over many hours and days, I watch the circle of light glide across the interior of the space at a glacial pace, serving as a sundial and spotlight. I surreptitiously document individuals and groups intuitively performing in the searing aperture of light, revealing their inner desires, aspirations, and our society’s penchant for imagistic self-portraits. An ancient monument almost completely intact, the Pantheon’s design consists of circles and squares; circles representing the infinite, perfect god, and squares representing the mortal, flawed human. Over the years, I have let the visual tapestry of the Eternal City wash over me before and after photographing at the Pantheon. A tangential body of work has materialized, allowing me to revisit my first foray into photography: traditional black and white analogue images. I began this process by opening my own aperture for over a minute and used my hand to cover and uncover it. The resulting work is a series of multiple exposures made in camera, then printed in a traditional wet darkroom. The works presented are almost completely produced in June of 2024.