American photographer Wendy Paton allows herself to disappear in order to let her subjects emerge from the night. In “Visages de Nuit” (Faces Of Night), Paton’s eye is that of the celebrant as well as a voyeur, and in graphic compositions of black and white that mesmerizes us, she offers personal and intimate glimpses of our human, ineffable presence. Her nocturnal portraits are both intimate and familiar, compelling and mysterious. Paton, who works solely with manual film cameras, shot this body of work over a six-year span beginning in 2006. Intrigued by the mysterious and ever-changing nature of human personalities and their individual choices of expression, she chooses to photograph at night, when she believes people feel the freedom to be as they wish, take on a personality that they imagine or simply be themselves, striping down any false face. It is this freedom of expression at night that Paton searches for in her subjects. Her fascination with the darkness allows her to document with truth and clarity what she sees in the people of the night. Wendy Paton’s work has been exhibited in gallery and museum venues internationally, and is in private and public collections in the US and Europe.
Biography
Wendy Paton studied photography at the International Center of Photography in New York City, learned the intricacies of night photography from Michael Kenna, and darkroom printing techniques from her mentor and collaborator, master printer Chuck Kelton.
In 2009 a selection of images from Visages de Nuit debuted at the Rita K. Hillman Education Gallery at the International Center of Photography in New York City; the series first solo exhibition followed in the spring of 2010 at the Sous Les Etoiles Gallery in Manhattan. Paton’s photographs have been exhibited internationally and have been acquired by notable public and private collectors in the United States and Europe. She is represented by galleries in New York, Cologne, and Moscow.
The publication of this monograph, which represents the complete series of Visages de Nuit, will coincide with the retrospective exhibition, Visages de Nuit, at The Lumiere Brothers Center Of Photography in Moscow September 2012.
Book
Visages de Nuit – Wendy Paton
Authors: Karen Sinsheimer, Simon Van Booy, Xavier Canonne
24,5 x 29,5 cm
- 104 pages
ISBN 978-3-86828-326-6
45 Euros
Exhibitions
Visages de Nuit – Wendy Paton
04.09. – 04.10.2012
Lumiere Brothers Center For Photography
119072, Moscow, Russia
Exhibition and book signing
March 2013
Sous Les Etoiles Gallery, New York City
560 Broadway Suite 205
New York NY 10012 – USA
