Jose Picayo

"Brides Magazine, Bethlehem", New York, NY, 2005

2005

This photograph is printed on Japanese Paper. The price is for an unframed photograph. 11" X 14" Edition of 25. The Robin Rice Gallery is pleased to announce, 25 Years of Polaroids, a new exhibit by Jose Picayo. The opening reception will be held Wednesday, November 7th, from 6:00pm to 8:00pm. The exhibit will run through January 6, 2019. In this exhibition, Picayo seeks to revive the concept of unadulterated beauty captured as a single moment in time. An unapologetic user of film, Picayo prides himself on his avoidance of digital processing for personal work. When asked why it remains his preferred medium, Picayo answers, “Digital is so overpoweringly real; photography is more magical to me.” For Picayo, Polaroid film is a medium where he can capture something as is – a moment in time. Just to hold the photograph in his hands is enough. 25 Years of Polaroids showcases Picayo’s most iconic work. This exhibit includes personal photographs of Cuba from 1994, Polaroid image transfers showcasing his impressive use of visual texture and his eye for fashion. Also included are his Atget-esque tree portraits from a New Jersey public arboretum in 2012. Additionally, a selection of 8” x 10” Polaroids from Mugshots 2008, will be included, exploring how a person’s soul can be captured in what appear to be basic photographs. The main questions at the heart of Picayo’s photography stem from the mystery of human perception and the precious things that are lost to time. The invitational image, Rotating Doll, 1997, features a multi-paneled display of polaroids which cover an entire length of a wall. These 20” x 24” Polaroids appear larger than life and were given much praise in Picayo’s recent exhibit Polaroids 2016 at The Erie Museum in Erie, PA. This series stems from a collection of children’s dolls Picayo has found over the years, each one with its own strange and authentic story to tell. By cultivating a deteriorated look reminiscent of antique fresco painting, Picayo examines time using the inanimate faces of broken dolls, reflecting on the objects we hold dear and how they fall apart as we try to hold onto them. Picayo speaks of his own influences, crediting photographers Eugène Atget, Walker Evans, and Edward Curtis, Michael Disfarmer, and Torkil Gudnason with impact on both his fine and commercial art. He is well known for his work in fashion, but for Picayo his personal and commercial work are interrelated, each extensions of one another. Born in Cuba, Picayo immigrated to Puerto Rico during his childhood and settled in New York City by the early 80s. After receiving his BFA from Parsons School of Design, Picayo began his professional career as a commercial photographer, shooting for magazines such as Vanity Fair, Sassy, Taxi, and Connoisseur. Picayo’s work has since appeared in Harper’s Bazaar, L.A. Style, New York Times Magazine, Esquire, Rolling Stone, NY Magazine, HG, and Elle Décor. Picayo has held nine solo exhibits to date at the Robin Rice Gallery. Esquire Magazine...

This photograph is printed on Japanese Paper. The price is for an unframed photograph. 11" X 14" Edition of 25. The Robin Rice Gallery is pleased to announce, 25 Years of Polaroi...

This photograph is printed on Japanese Paper. The price is for an unframed photograph. 11" X 14" Edition of 25. The Robin Rice Gallery is pleased to announce, 25 Years of Polaroi...

This photograph is printed on Japanese Paper. The price is for an unframed photograph. 11" X 14" Edition of 25. The Robin Rice Gallery is pleased to announce, 25 Years of Polaroi...

Untitled (0828-22A, Nyc), Original Black and White Photograph of NYC, 2014 Artist Commentary: This is the first print in an edition of five. Approxi...

Artist Commentary: This is the second print in an edition of five. Approximate image size is 12"W x 8"H. Keywords: Nature, trees, branches, photograph, black and white, NYC, New Yor...

Untitled (0901-5A), Original Black and White Photograph, 2012 Black & white photograph. The composition frames the sunlight reflecting onto the water between two high contrast black ...

Bruce Cratsley, American (1944-1998) Vintage gelatin silver print Lifting Hand (Scot) Chez Moi A surrealist image of a hand with a light study Hand signed, titled and dated 1986-1988 verso image (each): 15 1/4 x 15 1/4 inches, matted to 24 X 20 inches Provenance: From the collection of AGFA Graphics Corporation David Bruce Cratsley (1944 - 1998) was an American photographer specialized in still lifes, portraits of friends, and life in New York City. He had a reputation of master of light and shadow. Bruce Cratsley attended Swarthmore College, graduating in 1966, and then, in the early 1970s, The New School for Social Research, studying under Lisette Model. Cratsley worked for many years as a gallerist at Marlborough Gallery before quitting in 1986 to become a full-time photographer. As "Bruce Cratsley", he exhibited in various New York galleries, like: Laurence Miller Gallery, Howard Greenberg Gallery and Witkin Gallery. Cratsley was represented by Yancey Richardson Gallery, a dealer of fine art photography based in SoHo. He was photographed by Elsa Dorfman who shot many luminaries including, Allen Ginsberg, Denise Levertov, Anaïs Nin and more. In 1978 Cratsley contributed the photo sequences for the musical The Class, performed by The New Ballet School at the New York City Center. In 1980, Cratsley showed his work, Atlantic City, 1977, an August beach scene, at the 11th Anniversary show at the Witkin Gallery. In 1989 Cratsley was awarded with the Guggenheim Fellowship for Photography, US & Canada. Cratsley documented gay life in NYC including his life with David Waine, who died in 1991. "I'd been photographing David since long before he became sick [...] at some point I realized that this was an extraordinary thing that was happening, and that I had an intimate relationship to it. I photographed David just a few hours before he died, not knowing what was about to happen [...] David was very spiritual [...] My pictures are a poetic, spiritualized look at AIDS". In 1995 Cratsley was included together with Barbara Norfleet, Olivia Parker and John Sturges in the list of bestselling photographer at Robert Klein Gallery...