5th Avenue and 42nd Street, Bryant Park in Manhattan
I am very happy to announce that one of my photographs from “Sub conscious way” has been highlighted on Feature Shoot, “35 Voyeuristic Photos of People on Public Transport Around the World.”
For more details about this work please click here!
New York City, Fall, 2014; Henry Francisco is a New York based competitive road cyclist whose passion for the sport goes beyond just riding his bike. Francisco is the founder of Montecci Bikes. Not only does he enjoy racing but, he also creates bikes designed for different personalities and purposes.
Inspiration comes from any direction when you least expect it, and when Francisco sees someone on a Montecci bike, it is priceless! In fact, Francisco finds most of his inspiration here in New York City. For instance, when choosing bikes colors, he would refer to the city for ideas.
It is safe to say that Francisco is a cycling enthusiast. “When I cross the George Washington Bridge, on my road bike to train, it-is-me, the-bike and the-pavement,” says Francisco. Also, he personally enjoys testing the bikes his company designs and builds. As a result, this passion is carried throughout every detail of his bikes production.
Francisco was born in Villa Juana, a progressive neighborhood in Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic. He grew up here watching cycling races, marathons, and parades. Although, at the time he did not have many resources, he still had an amazing childhood thanks to a group of adventurous friends who contributed lots of happiness.
The education that made him the man he is today, mostly came from his mother, who encouraged him to focus and work hard to achieve his goals. At an early age, he learned the important lesson that one can be rich without much money, and that one can be happy without lots of possessions. This valuable knowledge, taught by his lovely mother, Francisco shares and is also the fuel that is currently nourishing his company.
Montecci's Single/Fixed Gear Bike
A turning point in Francisco’s life happened in 2007, when he lived in Italy. Finding himself unemployed, he turned to his passion, cycling. He enjoyed riding his bike to a small town in Tuscany, Montecchio. The wonderful experiences Francisco had cycling in this town, sparked the idea to commence a company and commemorate the town by naming it Montecci Bikes.
In 2008, after returning to New York City from living in Italy for over a year, Francisco felt the need to create an affordable bicycle. This was a challenge, but before the company was even started, a brave customer ordered the first bike. This strong belief by his first customer was the catalyst to the company’s initiation.
As of now, Montecci is going through a growth spurt. They are acquiring more clients, making more sales calls, creating higher expectations, and providing exceptional customer service. Their bikes can now be found in many of New York City’s well known cycling shops. Francisco wants his customers to distinguish Montecci as a traditional and loyal brand.
Francisco is currently working on making Montecci available to customers in Washington D.C., Philadelphia, and the West Coast. He is working on producing the next generation of Montecci's mountain bikes, as well as the fifth generation of the Montecci Carbo-V model. Moreover, Francisco has trade shows planned for Montecci appearances in 2015, where he will introduce his growing brand to the cycling industry.
Francisco’s future goal is to have a professional team using Montecci bikes. In addition, he plans to have full distribution in all fifty states, as well as establishing the brand worldwide. As Francisco says, “If we made it in NYC, we can be successful anywhere.”
Credit:
Lighting advisor: Clifford Hausner, Profoto
Photography Advisor: Paul Aresu
Photography Assistant: Manuel Brito
5th Avenue and 42nd Street, Bryant Park in Manhattan
With great pleasure, I would like to announce that one of my art pieces from “Sub conscious way” will be included in an upcoming group exhibition at Castell Photography Gallery in Asheville, North Carolina called “NEXT” New Photographic Visions. The exhibition dates are November 07, 2014 through December 20, 2014. (Opening Reception: November 7, 2014 from 6:00 - 8:00 pm.)
Ben Altman, Bina Altera, Sheri Lynn Behr, Christopher Borrok, Debi Cornwall, Sharron Diedrichs, KK DePaul, Francisco Diaz, Deb Young, Fran Forman, Juno Gemes, Ray Grasse, Lavonne Hall, Jessica Hines, Bilo Hussein, Ellen Jantzen, Michael Jantzen, Sarah Jun, Won Kim, Karen Klinedinst, David Shannon, Ben Marcin, Jennifer Mcclure, Jim McKinniss, Ruben Natal-San Miguel, Jessica Owen, Randhy Rodriguez, Donna Rosser, Mark Roussel, Andi Schreiber, Magdalena Sole, and Kevin Wo.
New York City, October 16, 2014; I am honored to announce that my work was published in the ‘Visual Arts Journal’ Fall 2014, along with notes in the Alumni Exhibitions section regarding my two group exhibitions along with other very talented artists.
For more information please see the following blog titles: Wondrous Indeed and Natural Selection
The Bright Sukkah
My neighborhood has a strong Hasidic Jewish community and during the seven-day event called Sukkot many Sukkah huts built out of different materials (predominantly of wood) on roofs and balconies can be seen throughout the area. However, this particular one is by far the most interesting of them all, which lives atop of the building that sits right in front of my apartment's window.
"Hot Summer Day" from Body of Work Amanda
I am pleased to announce that one of my images has been featured in Lenscratch’s “Shut Eye” online Exhibition. For more details please click here!
This photograph was taken in Brooklyn, New York during one of the few hot summer days we got this year (2014.) Amanda was feeling very uncomfortable because she was near the end of her pregnancy and the heat was not helping. Therefore, I opened all the windows in our apartment to get some cross ventilation. She leaned back to a corner in our bedroom to feel the breeze come in. I wanted to photograph the sunset, but the light was far more interesting in our bedroom.
This photograph contains lots of symbols (pregnant, dream catcher, shadow on the neck, head + arms + hands position, color of the shirt, and the warmth of the image) which were not intended. The reality is, I only saw a beautiful woman when I looked through the viewfinder and pressed the shutter button to make this photograph.
From this accomplishment, I would like to introduce my new body of work in progress which is titled “Amanda” after my beautiful wife.
August 2014; Fort Pond Bay, Montauk NY
Since getting the wonderful news of her pregnancy, Amanda fantasized of the idea of going to Fort Pond Bay to submerge herself in the calm waters and sense weightlessness. Feeling that her body is changing, movements becoming more restricted and knowing that the window for baby and mom to be together as one floating in the bay is closing, the fantasy became a strong desire.
She had been wanting to do this for the past eight months, and when it happened; it was magical!
Amanda and I have been together for over 9 years, and my camera has been beside me for the majority of this time capturing moments I want to remember. The first time I met Amanda was through a professional studio portrait on a computer screen. Although, her profile picture was beautiful, it did not say much about her character other than the obvious. My first words to her were “You are beautiful!” to which she replied “You are not bad yourself!”
I truly enjoy making photographs of people, especially of Amanda because I am in love with her beauty and fascinated with her face. During our early days, Amanda was never too fond of photography. In fact, she did not want me to take portraits of her. During this time, she began to love me and with that I earned her trust.
Love taught me how to feel every portrait, and time sharpened my senses for the kinds of photographs I wanted to make. Although, at times her patience can be fleeting, I have managed to capture the beauty I am in love with.
And so, this new body of work is from my vast collection of portraits of love for my beautiful wife, Amanda.
Lorimer Street in Brooklyn form body of work Sub conscious way
I am thrilled to announce that I will be presenting my work along with two other great photographers this Thursday at the NY Photo Salon, School of Visual Arts SVA.
Date: September 18, 2014
Time: Starting 6:30 PM
Location: 136 W 21st street, room 418F, New York, NY 10011
(Between 6th and 7th Avenues, on the south side of the street)
Fran Antmann
Randhy Rodriquez
Jay Maisel
Jay Maisel
Bill Westheimer
Jack Reznicki
David Hodgson
Rich Pomerantz
Beth Ackerman
An incomplete list of past presenters: William Albert Allard, Paul Aresu, Scott Barrow, Nina Berman, Barbara Bordnick, Chris Buck, Elinor Carucci, Danny Clinch, William Coupon, Chris Crisman, Jody Dole, David Doubilet, Andrew Eccles, Jill Enfield, Larry Fink, Chip Forelli, Rafael Fuchs, Lynn Goldsmith, Greg Gorman, Jill Greenberg, Guzman, Dirck Halstead, Charles Harbutt, Henry Horenstein, Walter Iooss, Len Jenshel, George Kamper, Ed Kashi, Sean Kernan, Douglas Kirkland, Parish Kohanim, Hugh Kretschmer, Henry Leutwyler, Marcia Lippman, Roxanne Lowit, Matt Mahurin, Jay Maisel, Jim Marshall, Michael Mazzeo, Steve McCurry, Joe McNally, Doug Menuez, Sandro Miller, Abelardo Morell, Hans Neleman, Charles Nesbit, Arnold Newman, Sylvia Plachy, Bob Sacha, Howard Schatz, Rodney Smith, George Steinmetz, Michel Tcherevkoff, Philip Trager, Nick Vedros, Stephen Wilkes, Michael Yamashita (Complete list)
ClampArt Gallery, New York City, September 11, 2014; Opening reception of “Alter Egos” by artist Mark Beard, curated by Brian Paul Clamp.
Thursday night, a lovely September evening to be out in Chelsea admiring great works of art by top contemporary artists.
Mark Beard is an artist whose smart and playful creativity literally manifests in the form of different characters. His solo exhibition titled “Alter Egos” is a cohesive show containing many different scales, techniques, eras and styles of painting as Bruce Sargeant, Hippolyte-Alexandre Michallon, Edith Thayer Cromwell, Brechtholt Streeruwitz, Peter Coulter, Beard Beard, Buggereau, and Princess Ormolu. Although, he works with a diverse selection of models, in many of his paintings their faces have perhaps an intentional common appearance. Moreover, the presentation of the show was professional and well executed. The show’s success comes from connecting the title to the body of work and knowing about the artist. The beauty of this understanding adds a sense of humor to the show, a clever way of the artist communicating with his audience.
The gallery’s atmosphere was exciting, people were there specifically to celebrate and buy many of Mr. Beard’s art pieces.
In conclusion, the opening reception was well received by a large group of people (celebrities, friends, fellow artists and show goers) in attendance. From beginning to end of the night, the gallery was completely filled with people enjoying themselves, snacks, libations and of course great conversations. I would rate the overall experience highly and recommend it to others.
The show will remain on view through October 11th.
ClampArt Gallery is open Tuesday – Saturday, 10 – 6pm.
Mark Beard
Born in Salt Lake City, Utah, in 1956, Mark Beard is a well-established artist living in New York City with artworks in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City; the Museum of Modern Art, New York City; the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York City; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, Connecticut; Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut; Princeton University, New Jersey; among many, many others. (C.A.)
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Mr. Beard is a versatile artist who channels his creativity through multiple mediums. In his Hell’s Kitchen open space studio, Mr. Beard creates and stores a large collection of his work including sculptures, upholsteries, photographs, paintings and more.
After spending time with Mr. Beard, I noticed a few interesting things about him that can be traced to his success. He is very involved in the installation of his work from designing custom details of frames to assembling his work on site. In addition, he is the kind of artist who would work on a painting until he feels that is ready, meaning that he is willing to work on a particular piece for many months or even years if necessary.
Brian Paul Clamp
ClampArt is pleased to announce “Mark Beard: Alter Egos”—the artist’s fourth solo show at the gallery.
A visit to Mark Beard’s studio is akin to discovering Michelangelo’s lair: oil paintings cover the walls; life drawings are scattered on the tops of tables nestled at the feet of heroic bronzes; and ceramics and architectural maquettes abound—virtuosity in every medium. But then it gets even more interesting. Beard’s talents and artistic energy are in such abundance that over twenty years back he began channeling his creative output into a variety of alter egos. The persona of “Bruce Sargeant” was the first conceived—an imaginary British artist born in 1898 and a contemporary of such intellectuals as E.M. Forster, Rupert Brooke, and John Sloan. Then came Sargeant’s teacher, Hippolyte-Alexandre Michallon (1849-1930), a 19th-century French Academician. The fraternity continued to grow with other students of Michallon’s, such as Edith Thayer Cromwell (1893-1962), an American avant-garde painter and close friend of Sargeant’s; in addition to Brechtholt Streeruwitz (1890-1973), a troubled German Expressionist and arch-rival of Beard’s original alter ego. Mark Beard is certainly unprecedented, but not singular. Accomplished in every medium, he is more than a complete artist—he is now at least eight or nine, working in as many distinct and unique styles.
“Alter Egos” at ClampArt is a showcase of works by Beard’s first five personae—Bruce Sargeant (1898-1938), Hippolyte-Alexandre Michallon (1849-1930), Edith Thayer Cromwell (1893-1962), Brechtholt Streeruwitz (1890-1973), and contemporary African-American painter Peter Coulter (b. 1948). However, recently more artists have emerged, and the exhibition will feature paintings by Beard’s newest personalities, including the Hudson River School painter Beard Beard (b. 1885), the queer contemporary figure Buggereau (b. 1956), and transsexual graffiti artist Princess Ormolu (b. 1979).
I am very happy to announce that one of my images has been featured in Lenscratch’s Road Trip online Exhibition. For more details please click here!
This photograph was taken on route 78 in Warren, New Jersey during a strong snow storm. It was a disturbing accident, where the car in front of us lost control and caused a snow ball effect disaster involving at least fifty cars. As I remember, this accident occurred at slow speed, but could not be controlled due to the weather conditions. The collective force of mangled metal running down hill was analogous to a river going down stream. From this unfortunate event, I managed to capture this photograph which I titled “Dead River Rd” after the overpass above the accident.
Plastic Flamingos, Three Mile Island, Pennsylvania
This photograph looks like a statement regarding how we generate energy and its impact on our environment. Honestly, I do not have any tangible knowledge that supports such statement. This photograph was created because I thought it was visually interesting only. In fact, about three houses up-stream there is a lot of wildlife.
I like to think that the plastic flamingos were put in place by someone who likes how the color pink looks against the lush green of the grass. Or to symbolize that flamingos live near lakes, swamps and seas during tropical weather, far away from Pennsylvania where this photograph was taken.
The irony of this photograph is that what it says to me may be very different to what it says to others.
Wildlife, Three Mile Island, Pennsylvania
I am thrilled to announce that I sold another one of my prints from my body of work “Sub conscious way” to a private collector.
In this photograph, I am inspecting the work before it goes to another facility for a custom frame finish. Measuring at 60” wide x 22.5” tall, it is the largest size available from this series. In addition, there are other smaller sizes available for sale. Please contact me at info@randhyrodriguez.com for additional information.
American Classic Car
After finishing a location shoot assignment, I saw this American classic car. So, I took advantage of the opportunity and photographed it.
FOLEY Gallery
Foley Gallery, New York City, June 11, 2014; Opening reception of Year of the Fire Horse by painter Yumiko Kayukawa Curated by Michael Foley.
Year of the Fire Horse, Kayukawa’s first solo show at Foley Gallery, an intimate place where one can enjoy art closely and move through the showrooms on a rhythm perfectly curated with pauses in between. Foley said, “With Year of the Fire horse, I was looking for a nice balance of spiritual reckoning and tough girl grit. Yumiko's work has many layers, they are complex. I always find something new in them." I am the type of person who loves to look at art of skilled artists and Yumiko Kayukawa’s work is heaven for this penchant. Her paintings are colorful, playful and finely detailed of captivating figures and elegant patterns which all together deliver the message.
As written in the press release: Year of the Fire Horse (Hinoe Uma) continues Kayukawa’s exploration of pop culture, western fashion and the animal kingdom - all fused together with references to traditional Japanese customs and iconography. Employing a traditional Ukiyo-e pallet with a contemporary Manga style of painting, Kayukawa delicately balances personal narrative with fantastical natural scenes.
In conclusion, the opening reception was well received by the people in attendance who kept coming constantly by groups to enjoy the show and have a great time with friends and meeting new people. I would rate the overall experience highly and recommend it to others. The show will remain on view through July 12th. Foley Gallery is open Wednesday – Sunday, 12 – 6pm. To request images; please contact the gallery at 212.244.9081 or info@foleygallery.com.
Kayukawa grew up in the small town of Naie in Hokkaido, Japan. In her pristine and natural surroundings, Kayukawa found her love of animals and nature, which later became an important theme of her work. Throughout the years, Kayukawa has found inspiration from American pop culture such as Rock & Roll, film and fashion. Kayukawa's unique style arose from the fusion of these influential sectors of American pop culture with modern and traditional Japanese motifs.
Kayukawa graduated from Bisen Art School in Sapporo, Japan and currently works and resides in Seattle, Washington. She has shown her work extensively both nationally and abroad since her debut U.S. solo exhibition in 2001.
Skateboarder in Motion by Randhy Rodriguez
As seen on JJ' IG feed
Josh Johnson (JJ), Instagram (IG), June 2, 2014; It was a wonderful surprise to realize that my work has been selected out of thousands of photographs to be featured on Josh Johnson’s Instagram feed, whose community is comprised of 620K active members.
First, it was picked up by two other IG feeds who are editors for JJ (JJ_editor_nselmo and JJ_editor_rosajulia.) Subsequently, it caught the attention of Kevin Kuster (Former Senior Photo Editor for Playboy Magazine and now Watts of Love Creative Director, CEO #JJ Community) who featured it on JJ’s main feed. As of now, my photograph has received 3,436 likes (and counting) plus comments.
This exposure has been delightful! I have gained more supporters on my personal IG feed (@randhyrodriguez) and connected with a vast audience who have engaged with my work and vice versa.
I would like to thank Josh Johnson for creating such a lovely and inspiring feed. Also, I would like to thank JJ_editor_nselmo and JJ_editor_Rosajulia for featuring my work as well.
A special thanks to Kevin Kuster for the compliment and very accurate note he wrote about the technical aspect of my photograph. (Great movement to this image. Shooting action with a slow shutter speed and slightly tracking with the subject will give you this type of blur. Bravo Randhy Rodriguez. _KK)
To view my work on Instagram, please click on the photographs below. Thank you!
Photograph taken from a moving car on my way to Denver International Airport.
Photograph taken from across the platform while waiting for the train going to Prague, Czech Republic.
Art by LJ Lindhurst
HERE Art Center, New York City, April 17, 2014; Opening reception of the art exhibition Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo, curated by Dan Halm, a group exhibit expressed through a variety of mediums that at first glance appears to be benign and joyful, but the truth is darker and it sits deeper within each individual’s pieces.
Dan Halm, Curator
Entrance to the Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo exhibition
In my opinion, the opening reception was a success. The show experience gets enhanced by the smart layout plus the space itself starting from the exterior, walking west along the colorful and cheerful storefront toward the entrance, it psychologically sends a message to my mind that everything inside is consistent with the jovial façade. However, when the entrance opens, it is darker inside! The show gets its energy from the layout of the work. In fact, the layout provides each piece the right amount of space allowing people to congregate and engage with the art.
Moreover, I briefly spoke with a few of the artists from whom I got insightful information about their work.
Art by Richard Stauffacher, "Home, Sweet from his series Seventeen"
Richard Stauffacher, Artist
Show-goer enjoying free treats
For instance, when I spoke with Richard Stauffacher about one of his pieces, Home, Sweet from his series Seventeen, a bell jar containing a pinky rat resting on a nest of bones topped by cotton candy, although this piece appears to be cute, there is a dark personal meaning behind his choices. He is tackling the tenuous and awkward relationship between pre-adult children and their parents through specific and formative moments of childhood. Growing up, Stauffacher describes his father as hyper-masculine and initially hesitant of his son’s sexual orientation. For this reason, Stauffacher’s art is in response to his father and his own feelings during his adolescence. The pinky rat symbolizes offspring who are very vulnerable and dependent on their parents. The seventeen individual bones in his work mark the date of his father’s birthday, which was on the same date of the opening. He also spun cotton candy during the reception as a treat to viewers wrapped around bones (17 units only.)
Another artist I had the pleasure of conversing with was Matt Bucy. His piece, Of Oz the Wizard consists of re-editing the film “Wizard of Oz” so that the dialog is rearranged alphabetically. Bucy says that the thought for this project happened two years prior from a conversation with a friend. However, after the initial conversation, he forgot about the project until the same friend asked him about it again. In order for Bucy to be fast and efficient, he developed his own computer algorithm to facilitate re-editing the film.
The film was displayed on three screens laid next to each other horizontally and synchronized to play the same thing simultaneously. I am familiar with the “Wizard of Oz”, and as I watched Bucy’s re-edit, I found myself entertained and engaged with the film in an uncanny and abnormal way that is far from the original.
In conclusion I would rate the overall experience highly and recommend it to others.
April 17 – May 24, 2014
Opening Reception, April 17, 5:00-7:00pm
HERE proudly presents Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo, at HERE (145 Sixth Avenue) from April 17th – May 24th, Tuesday – Saturday 2:00-7:00pm. Curated by Dan Halm, the artists selected for this exhibition on the surface present cheery, candy-colored images but look a bit deeper and you’ll notice they are tackling darker, and in some cases sad themes of love, family, and self doubt. Whether it is Matt Bucy’s re-edit of the Wizard of Oz so that the film’s dialog comes out alphabetically, Gregg Louis’ wig sculptures, Richard Stauffacher’s cotton candy nests or Colleen Ford’s golden carrot hung just out of hand’s reach – these works are meant to delight and bring a smile to the viewer’s face and then after spending some time observing them, notice how dark they truly are.
“The show takes its title from the beloved song that first appeared in the Walt Disney version of Cinderella,” says Halm, “But the phrase Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo also has a darker origin, as the name of the devil’s daughter in the story of “Bubnoff and the Devil” by Ivan Turgenev. I love how something as sweet as the song can be rooted into something much bleaker, very much like the art selected for this exhibition; things aren’t as cheerful as they might first appear.”
Press contact: Kristin Marting / Kristin@here.org / 212-647-0202 x 320
To download the complete press release please click, HERE!
**Portrait of Manjari Sharma by Randhy Rodriguez
March 27, 2014, the photography section of the Los Angeles Times. In an article by Barbara Davidson called “reFramed: In conversation with Manjari Sharma,” a portrait of Manjari Sharma created by me is featured, along with a beautiful article on Sharma’s photography career. I am honored and proud to have my portraiture work published by this great institution. I would like to thank Manjari Sharma for choosing me as her portrait photographer and Barbara Davidson, Los Angeles Times, for publishing my photograph.
**Please click on the images above to read the article about Manjari Sharma's career from the Los Angeles Times website.
New York City, April 10, 2014; I am extremely honored to announce that six of my photographs were recently published in the ‘Visual Arts Journal’ (VAJ) spring 2014, in a color commentary regarding my group exhibition along with eight other very talented artists represented by the SVA Galleries at the 2013 Miami Project art fair.
For more information please see the following blog title: Miami Project Recap
Moreover, the publication’s layout was flawless, beautifully designed, and in my opinion the flow from page to page was poetic. I am very satisfied with the spreads’ design to say the least. Its minimalistic quality uses white space as part of the design, and so it gives great importance to my photographs.
I would like to thank the following people; Ilona Szwarc, Mark De Wilde, Cassandra Levine, Jocelyne Gilead, Anna Beeke, Wyatt Mills, Frederick Paxton and Bradford Kessler for participating in this successful show. Last but not least, a special thanks to SVA Galleries’ project manager Dan Halm and team Miranda Pierce and Tyson Skross for organizing and coordinating such a professional show and VAJ’s editor Greg Herbowy for considering my documentary style photographs a perfect fit for the outstanding color commentary, “Behind the Booth: An inside Look at SVA’s Miami Project Installation.”
My good friend Ronald James Porcelli talks briefly about the origins of his latest book Living History, New York City’s Oldest Restaurants, Bars, and Bakeries, Et Cetera. For more information please click here!
KEENS STEAKHOUSE (1885) 72 West 36 Street, Manhattan
WOLFGANG'S STEAKHOUSE (1913) 4 Park Avenue, Manhattan
TEDDY'S BAR & GRILL (1887) 96 Berry Street, Brooklyn
CAFFE' ROMA (1901) 385 Broome Street, Manhattan
WHITE HORSE TAVERN (1878) 567 Hudson Street
CAFFE' REGGIO (1927) 119 MacDougal Street, Manhattan
