Sam Stapleton: Stilled Life

January 5-26, 2018
Sam Stapleton: Stilled Life
Opening reception: Friday, January 5, 5:00-9:00 PM
Exhibition hours are Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM – Please note, the Emporium is closed on Monday, January 15.

As the son of a 40-year employee of Eastman Kodak, photography seemed ordained to be a meaningful part of Sam Stapleton’s life, if not his livelihood. His first camera, a Kodak Brownie, was purchased with money earned at Eastman, and among his first images were photos of the smoke plume rising from the 1960 Eastman plant explosion that killed 16 employees including one of his neighbors. Through the years, his dedication to the varying pursuits of rock concert photography, color landscape imagery, magazine collaboration with his freelance writer/wife, Patricia Hudson, as well as black and white portraiture arising from the births of two daughters, have led inexorably to the maturation of his photographic vision. “I now see myself engaged in a continual search for beauty in the hidden recesses of nature,” says Sam Stapleton.

Artist statement: My series, Stilled Life, juxtaposes the ephemeral beauty of flowers with the concept of eternal beauty. By freezing the flowers that I photograph, the otherwise transient splendor of the blooms is placed in stasis, potentially forever. The resultant ice texture is meant to have a profound effect upon the viewer, adding an unexpected dimension that commands closer inspection of the imagery. In essence, one’s attention is to be momentarily frozen. I created these photographs to serve as a reminder that although nature only permits the blossoms to flourish for a few hours to a few days, their beauty is something that resonates in our souls forever. For more information, please visit http://samstapletonphotography.com.