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Indepth Arts News:
"Family Work Series by Groana Melendez"
2010-04-17 until 2010-09-07
en foco at the Seventh and Second Photo Gallery
New York, NY,
USA United States of America
"Family Work Series" an exhibition of portraits by Groana Melendez is featured in En Foco's Touring Gallery program
opening April 17 through September 7, 2010 at Aguilar Library/NYPL, 174 East 110th Street (between Lexington & Third Ave) in New York City. New York City based photographer Groana Melendez's work, pays a poignant tribute to her family. Born in Brooklyn, her parents immigrated in the late '70s from the Dominican Republic. They left behind family in order to start a new life in a new country. Her ongoing Family Work series is a tribute to both her family living in the states, as well as those still in the Dominican Republic.
As Melendez states, "I photograph my family because I have a need to immortalize them from my point of view. I act as both a participant and observer. there are different class
dimensions in my family; family that could afford certain luxuries versus those that live day by day. Judgments and prejudices are made from one part of the family to the other, and I have attempted to move between the two."
Melendez's images are a personal investigation of her family, the spaces they inhabit, and demonstrate the intimate relationship between photographer and the sitter, but in the process she explores issues of class, family relationships, and ultimately a deeper understanding of her own roots. Melendez's ability to put her sitters at ease allows her to make portraits that are striking with sincerity and openness, while allowing the viewer a glimpse into a moment of their lives.
Her work is a reminder of the importance of family; a collective experience common to all of us, whether members of our family live down the street, or live in another country.
Melendez received her B.F.A. in Art Photography from Syracuse University. She has exhibited her work at the Soho Photo Gallery, in the 2006 Pigyao China International Photography Festival, and has given various lectures at Rutgers University.
IMAGE
Groana Melendez,
Tio Bolivar, Gazcue,
Santo Domingo, R.D. 2006.
Family Work Series.
Archival Pigment Print, 20 x 24"
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