Artist’s Statement:
I photograph the landscape at night and at dawn. The camera captures the frames as stills, freezing time, regardless of the length of the exposure, and creating an image different from what the eye perceives. I like to believe that these resulting images are from a moment suspended between night and day.
The camera allows me to see my surroundings with new eyes. Out at night, alone, the day’s cares recede and the sense of time fades. Allowing a heightened awareness to take over, I direct my attention to conveying the quiet and solitude of the night. It is this shift in attention, I believe, that allows me to experience the moment with a different vision.
My exposure and printing decisions enable me to take the surroundings I know so well and present them, as they have not been seen before. What fascinates me about this process is that magical element of surprise. I venture out in search of scenes that contain an unknown light source of have some other mysterious quality. Of course there are times when I don’t find anything. Since the night sets the stage, I never know where I will wind up. It reminds me so much of life.
Artist’s Bio:
Bob Avakian and his wife Gail visited Martha’s Vineyard for the summer in 1973 and it has been home ever since. As his photographic vision has evolved he has been drawn to the natural landscape and an exploration of night photography. Recently Bob’s night photography was awarded First Place in the Neutral Density Photography Awards 2014. He was selected as a Photolucida Critical Mass 2013 Top 50 photographer. In the International Photo Awards 2013 Annual competition Bob won 2nd place in the Night Photography category. In Photo Nights Boston’s “Photorama” his photography won 1st place. His work was also chosen to exhibit in the Danforth Museum’s “Photography Bienniel” and at the Cape Cod Art Association’s “All New England”, where he was awarded Best of Show. Bob has exhibited work from his series “Between Night and Day” at the Davis Orton Gallery in Hudson NY in a two person show with photographer Stephen DiRado. He was awarded a solo show of the series at the South Shore Art Center in Cohasset MA and in March 2013 he was the Featured Artist on the Photographic Resource Center, Boston’s website PRCNEO. His photos have been featured in Aline Smithson’s, “Lenscratch”; in Wilson Cummer’s New Landscape Photography blog and on the popular photo site Peta Pixel. His work is in the collection of The Boston Athenaeum and the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital’s permanent art collection. He is a juried member of the Cape Cod Art Association and the South Shore Art Center in Cohasset, Ma.