Bright Nights : Photographs of Another New York
7:30PM
NYC-based photographer Tod Seelie comes to SPACE for a slide talk / launch party on the occasion of his first book of photographs, BRIGHT NIGHTS: Photographs of Another New York, which features images taken over the last 15 years.
Of his work, Tod says: “My photos of New York are unusual. I shoot at the edges; I don’t really take pictures of landmarks. If you see a picture of the Williamsburg Bridge it’s because I’m shooting an illegal party taking place on top of it. I focus on various subcultures in all their forms, but I can’t resist iconic images of my New York: burning cars, flattened rats, abandoned buildings. I’ve spent many nights over the last decade in the crowds at DIY rock shows, bizarre parties, and guerrilla art shows in abandoned buildings. These images mix with street scenes, intimate portraits of friends, and moments that inspire a double-take of confusion and wonder. Rough bike gangs appear next to amateur strip contests at drag parties, followed by a fancy dinner in a train tunnel.”
A 2011 New York Times feature said “His images at times elevate mere weirdness to a more striking realm of visual intrigue. Strange, vivid, baffling and relentlessly unexplained, they leave their viewers transfixed.”
The book includes mini essays by Tod’s friends and peers that help set the stage of what was happening and what it was like to to live in New York between 2000 and 2012, when most of these pictures were taken. The contributing writers include past SPACE artists Conrad Carlson (Black Label Bicycle Club), Caledonia Curry (Swoon) and Sto Len (Cinders Gallery).
Tod had a solo show titled Constant Quarry at SPACE in October, 2008, and we are looking forward to his return.
