reception 9/11/15@ 6pm
Skin of Place: Bozeman – new exhibit by photographer Jelani Mahiri
Photographer Jelani Mahiri will exhibit his work in the Atrium Gallery at the Bozeman Public Library September 1 through October 30, 2015. The Bozeman Public Library Foundation, sponsors of the exhibit, will host an artist’s reception on Friday, September 11, 6:00 – 7:30 p.m., free and open to the public with live music by Gabe Lavin and Aaron Banfield, playing acoustic world music and jazz, and refreshments.
“While I have photographed some of the natural wonders in the Bozeman area, this series depicts aspects of Bozeman in a more abstract manner” says Mahiri. “It explores the effects of time, color, and texture on our perceptions of and feels for urban landscapes. The Skin of Place: Bozeman series is not intended to represent the city in a broad manner, but to offer one point of view on some of the hidden beauties and curiosities of the place I now call home.”
Along with early training in photojournalism and black and white photography, Mahiri has been taking pictures since age 16. Photography has been one thing he has always enjoyed, not just the taking of the pictures, but the whole process of shooting, developing, printing, and framing.
Mahiri is originally from Chicago, and attended Morehouse College and Georgia Tech in Atlanta, Georgia, earning undergraduate degrees in Physics and Spanish. During this time, he made his first trips out of the US traveling to Jamaica and Oaxaca, Mexico. These separate excursions incited his passion for learning languages, traveling, and engaging with people from different parts of the world. He focused these interests by earning an M.A. and Ph.D. in Cultural Anthropology from the University of California at Berkeley.
It was during his doctoral work that he began to explore his photographic interests more in-depth. He was particularly inspired through seminars with internationally renowned photojournalist Gilles Peress and the outstanding photographer Lewis Watts. At the UC Berkeley ASUC Arts Studio, he learned how to make prints from color negative film, construct and photograph with pinhole cameras, and delve into Polaroid transfer processes from slide film. In 2003, Mahiri began working with Michael Williams, owner of the Albany Arts Gallery in Albany, CA, where he learned cibachrome printing from color slides and where he was introduced to the possibilities and future of digital printing.
The exhibition will be on display during Library hours. A percentage of sales will go to the Bozeman Public Library Foundation to ensure continuation of cultural programs at the Library for public benefit. For more information about the exhibit or opening reception, please call Sarah DeOpsomer at 582-2425 or email programs@bozemanlibraryfoundation.org.
