What you see in the show (which continues through Feb. 21) is that Gowin managed to imbue his students with his core values as a photographer–a communion between subject and photographer within a greater context–while insisting on each student incorporating those values in a style of his or her own.
As Joel Smith, the art museum’s curator of photography, writes in the exhibit catalog, "Rather than asking who influences whom, Gowin suggests asking, ‘Does the work of art as an entity honor its influence by being itself?’"
Fazal Sheikh (Class of 1987) is represented in the show by Kikuyu village, route to Limunu, Kenya, 1986, a lyrical portrait of an African man in a turtleneck sweater, his open hand touched to his cheek, a musing, half smile on his face. The portrait occupies the left side of the frame, and on the right, half outside the frame, is the torso of an African woman in a striped dress, her hand on her hip, her elbow jutting toward the center of the frame.
"[Gowin’s] comments," Sheikh writes in the wall panel, "marked a turning point for me. It took me years to realize he was urging me toward a consistency between art and life."
Each student’s picture (some taken years after they graduated) is accompanied by a brief statement reflecting, directly or indirectly on the experience of studying with Gowin.
Ashley Grider (Class of 2001), whose Draft Horse, Philadelphia, 2007 is shown here, writes, "My work feeds on fresh discovery. Through the practice of photography, I encounter a world at once more fragile, surprising and unstable than I might otherwise allow."
Nelson Hancock (Class of 1990) became an anthropologist and has since taken up wedding photography. He photographed the eating clubs of Princeton as a thesis project under Gowin, "I started learning how to be present and socially engaged while also testifying from an outside point of view. Balancing these two positions is still the hardest part of much of the work I do."
I found the comments from the former students interesting and truthful about photography, and I thought the photographs were strong. Here are a few others. From top,
Susannah Ray (Class of 1994), Kui, February Swell, from the series Right Coast, 2005, a photograph of an intrepid swimmer or surfer in wet suit making his way across a snow-covered beach.
Laura McPhee (Class of 1980) Banyan Tree and Sixteenth Century Terracotta Temple, Attpur, West Bengal, India, 1998.
Grider
Charlotte Whalen (Class of 2005) National Police Archive, Guatemala, 2008.
NOTE: If you’re curious what the title "Kisses of a Kind" refers to, see the prior post, which dealt with Gowin’s own work.