PERRYSBURG TOWNSHIP, OH - Owens Community College's Walter E. Terhune Art Gallery invites area residents to visit the diverse world of documentary photography as internationally recognized Mary Ellen Mark displays her masterful work in an exhibit titled "Twins", Sept. 29 - Nov. 8. The Walter E. Terhune Art Gallery is located in Owens' Center for Fine and Performing Arts on the Toledo-area Campus in Perrysburg Township.
In addition to the exhibit, there will be a lecture presentation by Mark on her work on Thursday, Oct. 2, at 7 p.m. in Center for Fine and Performing Arts Room 111. During the lecture, Mark will share insightful detail about her work and journey as a photographer. A reception will immediately follow the lecture.
"Owens Community College's Walter E. Terhune Art Gallery is proud to welcome such an extremely well-recognized and widely accomplished photographer as Mary Ellen Mark come to Northwest Ohio," said Wynn Perry, Owens Part-Time Coordinator of the Walter E. Terhune Art Gallery.
"Mark's work is innovative and realistic. Her pictures capture the essence of humanity and go far beyond conventional borders in capturing the stark reality of life."
Mark has achieved worldwide visibility through her numerous books, exhibitions and editorial magazine work. She is a contributing photographer to "The New Yorker" and has published photo-essays and portraits in such publications as "LIFE", "The New York Times Magazine", "Rolling Stone" and "Vanity Fair". For over four decades, she has traveled extensively to make pictures that reflect a high degree of humanism, highlighted by completed projects in Iceland, New York City, Washington D.C. and the United Kingdom, among other locations. Today, Mark is recognized as one of the most respected and highly influential photographers around and her images of the world's diverse cultures have become landmarks in the field of documentary photography. Of note, her profound portrayals of Mother Teresa and Indian circuses were the product of many years of work in India and her photo essay on runaway children in Seattle became the basis of the Academy Award-nominated film "Streetwise", directed and photographed by her husband, Martin Bell.
Mark's many accomplishments include receiving over 50 awards for her work, including the Cornell Capa Award by the International Center of Photography in 2001. She also was honored with the Infinity Award for Journalism from the International Center for Photography, the Matrix Award for outstanding woman in the field of film/photography, two Robert F. Kennedy Awards, and three fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, among many other accolades.
In addition to appearing in hundreds of exhibits worldwide, the internationally-renowned documentary photographer has 16 published books to her credit with the most recent being released in 2007. Mark also regularly teaches photography workshops and gives lectures to diverse groups around the world.
As part of the "Twins" exhibit, Mark will explore in precise detail the unique relationship found within the world of twin siblings and how much they are alike, as well as subtle qualities that often make the individuals different. The "Twins" exhibit is a collection of photographs taken by Mark at the Twins Days Festival in Twinsburg, Ohio.
Mark visited the festival twice, once in 2001 and again in 2002, to photograph the hundreds of twins in attendance. In addition to the exhibit, the "Twins" project has been made into a book and a movie.
In conjunction with the "Twins" exhibit, Owens' Walter E. Terhune Art Gallery will serve as host to a panel discussion titled "Mothers of Twins" on Wednesday, Oct. 8. The panel discussion will begin at 7 p.m. and highlight discussion topics on history, cultural attitudes, family relationship and current national research related to the twins' phenomenon. On Monday, Oct. 13, WUPW-TV FOX Channel 36 News Director Steve France will address the changing face of news presentation and gathering from a visual perspective as part of a lecture presentation. The discussion will start at 7 p.m. Finally, Photojournalist William Jordan will provide insight into his work and the ethics of working with certain populations in highly contentious situations on Monday, Oct. 20, at 7 p.m. All three events will occur in the Center for Fine and Performing Arts Room 111.
Admission to the Walter E. Terhune Art Gallery is free and open to the public from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays; from 10 a.m. - 8 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays; and from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. Saturdays.
