Sunstone Winery in collaboration with Kana Manglapus Projects in Los Angeles, and with Milk Gallery in NYC, is pleased to present "The People," by Hunter Barnes his second exhibition in California.
Hunter Barnes’ photo documentary of the Nii Mii Puu, a Native American Tribe, is the result of a four-‐year journey he began in 2005. The first photographer in over a century invited to document the tribe, Barnes gives us a rare glimpse into a world largely unseen and ignored.
Barnes was first introduced to Uncle Irving, a respected elder at the Tamkaliks Pow Wow, a celebration of traditonal Native American Culture, in Wallowa, Oregon. They soon developed a close kinship and Irving invited Barnes to meet the families that fill this body of work. Hunter spent extended periods of time at both the Lapwai Idaho and Nespelam Washington Reservations, witnessing a traditional Native American culture making the transition to the modern age.
"Seeing this transition firsthand compelled me to document a people moving between two worlds," he says.
Hunter Barnes is a documentary photographer who focuses his artistic gaze on the faces of proud groups of people who are consistently misrepresented in the modern American narrative. Under the tutelage of Dr. R. Heist, he earned a Degree in Photography and Photochemistry. Distinguishing himself from his photographer peers through the integrity of his process from concept to print, he shoots exclusively in Black and White Film and Polaroid 665 Negatives and prints his own images adhering to the archival darkroom methods of the generations of masters who preceded him. In his home and creative retreat, nestled in a valley in the natural reserves of Oregon, he produces silver gelatin, fiber-‐based limited edition masterpieces each year. His photographs flash us into moments and scenes most people will never get to experience first-‐hand during their lifetime. Barnes cherishes the friendships he builds with people who recognize his sincerity and allow him access to their private worlds. After establishing their trust over meaningful dialogue and shared experiences, he frames his subjects as they are and where they dwell.
More about Hunter Barnes: www.hunterbarnes.com
