Last week I visited the Sidney Mishkin Gallery on 22nd Street for my second time so far. I really like visiting the Gallery and getting to see more interesting pictures of famous photographers through history. I really like seeing photographs rather than paintings because I build an image of my own from them. Last time, the Gallery exhibited a series of photos through history that portrayed emotions, it was quite moving. This exhibit was quite enjoyable as well.
In the first exhibit that I went to, the gallery was portraying various types of photographs and paintings through history. One that really got me thinking was a sketch of a vineyard in Italy. Instantly it reminded me of my grandfather’s vineyard in Greece. Although this sketch was a little dark and grey it brought a happy feeling to me. I also noticed on the very bottom of the painting there was Morse code. I asked what it meant and the curator told me that it portrays the saying “I heard it through a grapevine” and how during the war there were communication lines running through the vineyards in Italy and that’s how the expression emerged. I didn’t know that I could learn so much from a simple picture. It goes to show that a picture is truly worth a thousand words.
Going again last week for our class I once again realized my love for music. I used to play the piano for 8 years and so seeing pictures of great musicians is a pleasant sight. I enjoyed seeing pictures of musicians I know this time like Cab Calloway, Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald and Barbara Streisand. These are huge names that not only changed the music of their time, but shaped the music that we listen to today. I believe they were caught excellently in these stills and they definitely portray the musicians in their natural environment. I could easily tell Milt Hinton was a very good photographer at seizing the moment. The curator of the gallery said to me that Hinton once said “I’d sneak up to people and shoot them when they were off guard.” This clearly shows that his eye for candid pictures in portraying the subject of the picture naturally was good. I didn’t even know who Milt Hilton was before I visited the Gallery but I am growing to like his work and how he portrays history through his photographs.
I have to say, I really enjoy going to this gallery. It allows you to escape and look at something else in time. It is amazing how in a city like New York, there are still places that can truly escape you. I will definitely be visiting the gallery again through my time at Baruch and even after I hope. Maybe I can donate some art and keep the gallery going in the future.
– Constantine Petropouleas