For Immediate Release
Date: January 7, 2007
Contact: Carlos DeSantos
Email: carlosdesantos@desantosgallery.com
Phone: 713 520 1200

De Santos Gallery Presents:
Work by Ariane Roesch and Andrew Taylor

De Santos Gallery is proud to presentan exhibition of recent work by Ariane Roesch and Andrew Taylor . The exhibition runs from February 3 to March 3, 2007.  De Santos Gallery will host an opening reception on Saturday February 3, 6-8pm.

HOUSTON, TX  – De Santos Gallery’s 2007 inaugural exhibition is a compilation of recent works by Houston-based artists Ariane Roesch and Andrew Taylor, both of who utilize found images for different ends.

Ariane Roesch’s photographic assemblages deal with the infiltration of technology into everyday life. Roesch’s work incorporates personal and found photography with other materials likethread, string, and wire to make connections between seemingly unconnected elements, creating narratives and connotations among figures and objects. By comparing and contrasting emotional with technological connections, she questions man’s relationships and interaction with technology.
Utilizing a needle or a drill, she pierces the photograph and then stitches together the points of insertion. The photographs are mounted to a thick backing, like wood or foam board, with the thread or wire spilling out of the photographs frame into the surroundings. Some objects are more exaggerated, becoming part of a photo-based installation that reacts with its environment, where as others are more subtle. Just as technology permeates our lives, these installations are meant to investigate and redefine the space.

Andrew Taylor’s works originate from personal and found photographs that he digitally manipulates and prints by transferring pigmented ink from an ink jet printer onto watercolor paper.  Utilizing hundreds of vintage snapshots, Taylor replaces specific figures with self-portraits, thereby re-contextualizing and creating new narratives that challenge the unsophisticated, documentary nature of family photographs. 
By re-photographing self- portraits of men in various contexts, Taylor assumes the roles of the male stereotype found in the original image.  In what he considers a moment of performance, Taylor recreates a very specific posture, costume and camera angle, creating a connection between himself and the original subject.
Taylor then digitally deconstructs and manually reconstructs the images to form layered narratives depicting manifestations of the stereotypical 20th-century man.  The resultant work is often humorous and seemingly nostalgic, yet ironically reflects the sobering challenges of familial and patriarchal hierarchies.

Ariane Roesch was born in Germany and has lived in Houston, TX since 1996. She is currently studying Photography/Digital Media at the University of Houston.

Andy Taylor was born in Texas, he currently lives and works in Houston, TX.  He received his B.F.A from Lamar University in 2003.

About the De Santos Gallery
The De Santos Gallery, designed by architect Fernando Brave, is owned and directed by Luis and Gemma de Santos, who are natives of Spain and long-time residents of Houston. The De Santos Gallery specializes in photography (including traditional and new media) from contemporary European and Asian photographers including Anna Halm-Schudel, Roman Loranc, Sang-Nam Park, and Kimiko Yoshida. The gallery also has work available by North American and Latin American artists: Clyde Butcher, Linda Butler, and Edgar Moreno among others.

The De Santos Gallery is located at 1724-A Richmond Avenue at Dunlavy Street in the museum district of Houston. Gallery hours are: Tuesday through Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; we are closed on Mondays. For information, please call Carlos DeSantos at  713-520-1200 or visit  us online at www.desantosgallery.com