One of her inspirations on memory is a book called Travels with Herodotus by Kapuscinski. The book talks about Herodotus, one of the first historians to travel and record history by way of stories people told and how they were interpreted. The stories demonstrated how people would both hear a narrative and re-tell it and it would never be quite the same .For the author of the book, memory is about man’s struggle against time, against the fragility of memory and its ephemerality and perpetual tendency to erase itself and disappear…” Christine further elaborates on her images…. “In my photographs, I am exploring the notions of time, space, place and the illusion of memory.

About the Artist
Christine Laptuta was born in Toronto, Canada and now lives and works in Portland, Oregon. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts with Honors in Painting and Printmaking from York University, Toronto. Laptuta is included in the permanent collections exhibited at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa, the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, the Cleveland Museum of Art, and the Portland Art Museum. She is a recent recipient of the Julia Margaret Cameron Award for 2nd place: Nature Category, and was a featured artist for Fotofest’s International Discoveries II exhibition.

The DeSantos Art Gallery is one of only two fine art photographic galleries in Houston and is dedicated to bringing fine art photography, both traditional and contemporary pieces, to the Houston community. In 2003, DeSantos moved into a new location after unveiling a custom constructed stucco and glass 4 story building designed by architect Fernando Brave. The gallery is located in the rapidly evolving artistic community near the Menil Museum, University of St. Thomas, and Houston Museum District. The DeSantos Gallery represents both American and International photographers and prides itself in selecting fine art photographers from the 20th and 21st century regardless of short-lived trends. The DeSantos Gallery also provides art consulting services, education and lectures on fine art photography and provides expert guidance to individual and corporate buyers regarding photography purchases and placement.

View Bio

[View with PicLens]

12►

Gemma DeSantos, Director

713-520-1200

DeSantos Gallery

1724 Richmond Ave.

Houston, Texas 77098

info@desantosgallery.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 01/01/2011

DeSantos Gallery Presents Photographic Reflections on “Memory” to Usher in the New Year, featuring a unique Trio of Women Fine Art Photographers.

Houston, Texas (January 1^st, 2011)—DeSantos Gallery is proud to present three exceptional Photographic artists at a special exhibit celebrating a New Year entitled “Memory”.  The exhibition will highlight selected sets from notable artists Francesca Bontempi, Jennifer F. Schlesinger, and Lori Vrba.  The exhibition opens January 15^th, 2011 and will end February 12 ^th, 2011.  DeSantos Gallery invites you to a special reception and a first-hand viewing on Saturday January 15^th, 2011 from 5:30PM to 8:00PM on the first floor of the gallery located at 1724 Richmond Avenue, Houston Texas.

DeSantos Gallery was selected to review photographer portfolios for the prestigious FotoFest 2010 Biennial and it was during reviews that Gemma DeSantos, the gallery Director, decided to invite Bontempi, Schlesinger and Vrba to exhibit at the Gallery.  In the first opening of 2011, the DeSantos Gallery combines these artists’ most recent sets within a united theme of a “Memory”.  Each artist’s series displays a traditional look and style, while also evoking a more contemporary and modern feeling.  The sets enhance each other while simultaneously highlighting the different styles of the artists.  The pieces of the 3 different artists are pulled together by their shared visions of memories: of people, objects, youth.

“We are passionate about art and photographic art here at DeSantos and wanted to celebrate our success in bringing great artists to Houston with a theme that took a look back, and since photographic art is still sometimes looked at as a young medium and our Gallery features a majority of Contemporary pieces – we wanted to begin the year with an exhibit that brought that feeling of moving forward and the excitement of what is still to come for the medium also.” Explains Gemma DeSantos around how she chose the theme and collections for this unique exhibit.

About the Artists

Francesca Bontempi grew up in Italy and received her M.F.A. degree from the Roman School of Photography in 2004 and her BA in Photography and Cinema from the First University of Rome in 2007.  She has mentored under photographic greats including Ernesto Bazan and Gianni Berengo Gardin, and currently holds a position at La Casa Del Quartiere in Rome as a Photography Professor.  Her recent work includes both more contemporary Giclee prints with her series Sofia and the Others and more traditional Silver Gelatin prints as in her Time Tables series.

Jennifer F. Schlesinger was raised in Connecticut and received her B.A. in Photography and Journalism from the College of Santa Fe in 1998.  She has several years of experience as a professor with photography programs including the CSF Marion Center for Photographic Arts and the SITE Santa Fe Contemporary Art Museum.  She has won numerous awards for her work in photography and her work has been featured in several print journals.  Her most recent collection Object Diaspora is a series of toned silver gelatin prints that were photographed using a pinhole camera.   Schlesinger experiments with a long exposure and lots of light and movement to try and capture the “spirit” or Memory of the items’ previous owners.

Lori Vrba is a native Texan and studied at the Glassell School of Art located here in Houston Texas.  Her photographs are shot using an old Hasselblad and then developed by hand in her traditional home darkroom where she does all of the processing, printing and toning herself.  She uses a unique toning solution consisting of a heavy dilution of selenium and tea to bring out the personality and detail of her artwork.  Her work has been featured around the globe, including at the 2009 Lishui Photo Festival in China, Foto 8 Summer Show in London and most recently in a very unique custom installation of her recent Piano Farm silver and toned gelatin print series in New Orleans in 2010.

About DeSantos Art Gallery

The DeSantos Gallery is one of only two fine art photographic galleries in Houston and is dedicated to bringing fine art photography, both traditional and contemporary pieces, to the Houston community.  In 2003, DeSantos moved into a new location after unveiling a custom constructed stucco and glass 4 story building designed by architect Fernando Brave.  The gallery is located in the rapidly evolving artistic community near the Menil Museum, University of St. Thomas, and Houston Museum District.  The DeSantos Gallery represents both American and International photographers and prides itself in selecting fine art photographers from the 20^th and 21^st century regardless of short-lived trends.  The DeSantos Gallery also provides art consulting services, education and lectures on fine art photography and provides expert guidance to individual and corporate buyers regarding photography purchases and placement.

Copyright 2011 Sarah M Worthy

Provided by The DeSantos Gallery.  All Rights Reserved.

DeSantos Gallery

1724 Richmond Ave.

Houston, TX  77098

info@desantosgallery.com

NEW EXHIBITION AT DESANTOS GALLERY

New Work from Artist Cara Barer Makes Big Impression on the West Coast, Now coming to Houston.

HOUSTON, TX – Exciting new work entitled “Becoming a Myth” from Houston photographer, Cara Barer to be shown at DeSantos Gallery. The opening for the exhibition will be held on Saturday, November 7, 6-9 PM. The fascination with Barer’s new form of art photography continues to grow each year as she presents a new body of work about books.

Along with the book photographs in this exhibition, Barer will also present new mixed media sculptures created from the previously photographed books.  Barer has also cast one of these sculptures in bronze – a step in a different direction for her, but one that has opened a new door for the artist in her repertoire of mediums. Says Barer, ”I continue to experiment and find new ways to re-purpose books that no longer have a reason to exist. In this digital age of the 21^st century, I hope that people will consider the ephemeral way in which we choose to obtain knowledge, and the future of books.”

Barer’s work has crossed the boundaries of traditional photography, and ventures into unique territory by blurring the line between photography, book art, paper art, and sculpture. Her photographs have been featured in three new books about the many forms of paper art. “Perfect Paper,” published by Page One Publishing, in Singapore, “Papercraft,” published by Gestalten in Berlin, Germany, and also in “Paper, Tear, Fold, Rip, Crease, Cut,” by Black Dog Publishing in the UK.

In February, her new work was presented at the UCLA Book Fair by Susan Spiritus Gallery. After that, it was also shown in two group exhibitions this year in San Francisco at Andrea Schwartz Gallery, and in Los Angeles at Tarryn Teresa Gallery.  The Los Angeles exhibition, titled “Palimpsests,”recently received a positive review in the Los Angeles Times on October 9^th.

Her work is also being featured with Galerie Poller in the Frankfurt Book Fair in Germany, October 13-18, 2009.

ABOUT CARA BARER

Cara Barer lives and work in Houston, TX.  She is represented by galleries nationwide, and also internationally in Toronto, Canada, and Frankfurt, Germany. Her photographs are in many collections, public and private. Her work has appeared on numerous book and magazine covers.

HOUSTON, TX – De Santos Gallery is proud to announce that its next opening will highlight the work of Bill Armstrong This new exhibition is titled SPIRIT-From Darkness to Light. The exhibition will run from March 10 to April 2, 2007. De Santos Gallery will host an opening reception with Mr. Armstrong on March 10, 2007 at 6:30pm.

A Note About Bill Armstrong by Fernando Castro

In art doing what you are not supposed to do, occasionally bears interesting results. Arcimboldo painted faces whose parts are edibles, Jackson Pollock dripped paint on canvas, John Chamberlain smashed automobiles, Man Ray made photographs (rayographs) without a camera, etc. Bill Armstrong’s poetics defies traditional photographic practice in two ways. First, he does not photograph objects in the world, but rather objects that already are incipient representations –namely, collages he himself produces with different color papers. Secondly, he photographs these collages not focusing on them but on whatever lies beyond them at an infinite focal distance. This subversive photographic tandem generates a vast array of images with blurred edges and arresting colors.

Moreover, as Armstrong’s works detour the usual routes of photographic denotation they begin to travel along paths of suggestion and connotation. His main body of work appropriately named “Infinity” branches off towards various domains, one of which is the series “Spirit.” Says Armstrong, “This process of extreme blurring allows me to de-materialize the collages and create ephemeral images that explore different aspects of the spiritual.” Indeed, his Mandalas –concentric circles of explosive color–model a Buddhist cosmos where consciousness is but a mere indeterminate point in an infinite universe. Indeed, as the viewer gazes at the pulsating color circles he/she may intuit a path towards an expanding, unbounded space. However, as spiritual as they may be, the Mandalas also bear a model resemblance to stellar matter –red super-giants or imploding/exploding supernovas. So Armstrong’s adjudication of the title “Mandala” to a geometrically abstract image does not necessarily close its interpretation, but merely hints at a few among many interpretations.

Armstrong’s sub-series “Apparitions” and “Figures” are more clearly denotative although their human shapes are still imbued with ambiguity, as if they part of a dream or a nightmare. The black-and-white “Figure 72″ shows a figure walking towards (or away) from an ominous shape that may very well be a natural phenomenon or a mushroom cloud. As with dreams concocted in the random firing of our neurons during sleep, we struggle to give Armstrong’s Figures an interpretation. The artist informs us that his Apparitions originate in Roman sculpture photographed at infinite focal length. The art-historical irony thrust upon us by these mysterious faces is that Roman portraits purport to be the first depictions of individual persons whereas Armstrong’s pictures blur every trace of individuality. The artist himself finds an unintended resemblance of some of these images to his own father who died of cancer. Sculptural portraits endure the ravages of time better than most other media, but their hardness is also their fragility. Armstrong states, “Apparition is a personal quest to come to grips with the horror of death and the hope of redemption through image making.”

Although human consciousness fathoms structures that are infinite, human experience is finite. The optical property of infinite focus can be understood as a property of light and lenses. Bill Armstrong finds in the material properties of the photographic medium ways to hint at both the limited human experience and the human consciousness of the unlimited.

Remnant Beauty: Photographs by Roman Loranc

Houston—De Santos Gallery presents Photographs by Roman Loranc: Remnant Beauty. This show will highlight recent work by the Polish born photographer Roman Loranc. The opening will be held on Saturday 2, 2006 @ 5:30. The DeSantos Gallery will host Roman Loranc throughout the opening. This exhibit will run until December 30, 2006. The DeSantos Gallery is located at
1724 Richmond Ave. Houston, TX 77098

Artist Statement:
Some photographers believe their strongest work comes from exploring their immediate surroundings. “I think of myself as a regional photographer,” Loranc says, “but that does not mean the photography cannot be understood beyond the region. Right now people all over the United States indicate to me that regionalism, born of an informed attachment, has universal appeal.” Loranc shoots most of his pictures within an hour’s drive of his home in Modesto, California, but he is also interested in exploring his ancestral roots in Europe. For this reason he makes occasional photographic forays into Poland and Lithuania.

“I’m fascinated by the ancient churches of my homeland,” he says. “These are holy spaces where millions of people have prayed for hundreds of years. They are places of great humility, and remind us how brief our lives are. I feel the same way when I’m photographing ancient groves of native oaks in California. I was unconscious of this when I began, but upon reflection, I think the oaks are just as sacred as the old cathedrals of Europe. They are sacred in that they have survived for so many years. I’m aware that the native people of California held all living things as divine. For me a grove of Valley Oaks is as sacred as any church in Europe.”
“I think about how interconnected the world is,” Loranc says. “When I’m out on a crisp winter’s morning, shooting a stand of native oaks, I see oak galls hanging from the trees. These were once used to make the pyrogallol chemicals I use to develop my negatives. So the oak trees I am photographing played a part in the developer I use to process my negatives of those trees. It is healthy

Opening Reception will be on Thursday June 15th @ 6:00 Second Floor of DeSantos Gallery

Join us on Thursday June 15th, beginning at 6:00 pm for an exciting new exhibition at LADS Photography. This opening will highlight new artwork available at the gallery. This event is geared towards Interior Designers and Architects in the Houston area. Wine and complementary valet service will be provided.
Houston, TX 2006 –LADS Photography (1724-B Richmond), Houston’s premiere fine art photography house, is pleased to announce a new exhibition. LADS is nestled on the second floor of the DeSantos Gallery. The opening reception of LADS will be held on Thursday, June 15th 6:00pm-8:00 pm.

Luis A DeSantos, principal photographer of LADS Photography has provided stellar fine art photography for over twenty-five years. Luis DeSantos and his wife Gemma have been forerunners in the production and exhibition of fine art photography. With the addition of LADS, the DeSantos’ have created a one stop solution to meet all needs for the fine art photography collector. “We have a spacious and artful environment for the collector to experience our large collection of photographs from all over the world,” Luis DeSantos said.

This collection expresses a strong international perspective with architectural photography, and images from nature. It has a strong diverse appeal with something for everyone. “We provide solutions to design firms, companies, and individuals looking for the right photography for even the most discerning taste,” Gemma DeSantos added.

DeSantos Gallery provides innovative ideas about photography while maintaining a long-standing reputation for integrity and incredible customer satisfaction. For more information on LADS Photography or to inquire about reception invitations please call 713.520.1200 or visit www.ladsphotography.com.

DeSantos Gallery Presents: Flamenco by Carlos Saura
Spanish Photography

Houston, TX 2006- DeSantos Gallery (1724 Richmond Ave), Noted Spanish film director and photographer Carlos Saura visually captures the world of flamenco dance and music. In this current exhibition of photographs executed between 1950 and 2000. The photos illustrate in high contrast the discipline and collaboration of dancers and musicians as they rehearse and perform. Famous and legendary flamenco artists like Camaron, Paco de Lucia, Christina Hoyos and Farruquito, are immortalized by Saura’s camera. According to Saura, his photographic vocation started when he was ten years old. His interest first turned to photography years before deciding to dedicate himself to the cinema where he also shaped his love for flamenco.For more information regarding this artist please visit this New York Times link.

Join us on Saturday, May 6, beginning at 6:00 pm, for a unique look at the mystery of Iran. Artist’s talk at 6:30 pm, by Soody Sharifi.

Houston TX 2006 –News from Iran isn’t all about the country’s nuclear ambitions. Stealing the headlines on the streets, is a word of a new art revolution. Now Houstonians have an opportunity to get a glimpse into this new and vibrant Iranian art scene.

This underground revolution began with the international success of Iranian cinema, and in recent years has encompassed the thriving scene of Iranian contemporary photographers, whose works have stolen the show. Major installations in Sharjar and at Bienales in Venice, plus art fairs such as Art Basel, have the drawn interest world-wide.The DeSantos Gallery will display the works of 7 noted Iranian photographers, curated by Soody Sharifi, in a stunning gallery exhibition, opening May 6, 2006. Featured artists in addition to Ms. Sharifi, are Dadbeh Bassir, Shadi Ghadirian, whose work has garnered great attention since his Paris Photo exhibition, Bahman Jalali, Mehran Mohajer, Malakey Nayini, and Hamila Vakili.

These photographers all question perceived notions of identity, and each offers a very different and rich interpretation of what it is like to live under a Muslim theocracy. Each artist has a singular approach to questions of gender, youth culture, an individual’s role in a society, and, inevitably, religion.These Iranian voices reflect the incredible diversity of peoples, opinions, and outlooks that lie at the heart of this often misunderstood culture. From Iran’s pre-Islamic heritage to the social dynamics among Iranian teens, to intriguing illusions, these photographers have turned their eyes to an Iran that is rarely, if ever, seen in the West.

Opening Reception Saturday, December 10, 2005 6-9:00 pm
Where: Houston’s Premiere Fine Art Photography House
DeSantos Gallery 1724-A Richmond Avenue at Dunlavy

Vivid color, subtle shadings of grey.Boldness and mystery. This series of work, a collaboration of three prominent photographers, examines the contrasts in contemporary Korean photography. Delicacy and minimalism is present in the works of Sang-Nam Park, who was raised in a traditional Korean house, with bright sunshine penetrating the shoji-like doors and windows. Her series is entitled “Plants, Seen Through Light” and is remarkable in its simplicity.Works by Han Sungpil and Choi Byung Kwan, offer equally distinctive impressions.