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30/10/2002

Adam Beinash

Sterilemind Gallery, New York

Artist Biography
"I want to believe that reality is more beautiful and redeeming than fantasy could ever dream to be." -Adam Beinash

Adam Beinash's recent portraits and still lives are coming from an artist at a crossroad. After completing his studies in journalism in his native South Africa six years ago, he began building what has now become his extensive body of portraiture work. Beinash recalls Richard Avedon's seminal book, "Portraits", as one of the influences that ignited his passion for portraits. While Avedon succeeded in pushing the medium further than anyone previously, Beinash sensed that perhaps it was possible to achieve that clarity someday. The subtle psychology one can read into a face identified itself as the hallmark of a good portrait. This moved the young photographer in a resolution to discover how to "Öburn through someone's eyes until the light inside them poured out through the lens onto the film".

For several years Beinash focused on trying to dissolve the barriers between photographer, camera and subject shooting thousands of rolls searching for that ultimate connection, as true a portrait of his subject honestly looking the world in the eyes. Whether staged or spontaneous, one is struck by the apparent tranquility of Beinash's subjects who seem not to be looking into the lense, but directly into the eyes of the viewer, evidence of Beinash's efforts to cross this physical boundary. His use of subjects from among his friends and acquaintances contributes greatly to their openness with the camera. They exude an element of trust, a relaxed confidence, a modesty and self-realization. Concurrently, he was busy shooting for a wide variety of commercial South African publications - from fashion to still lives to portraits.

In many ways his professional work was at odds with what he was seeking privately, a disparity he perceived as eroding the progress he had made in transcending the camera. Strongly influenced by his background in photojournalism, Beinash preferred capturing what was naturally happening in a place without controlling the action. Whereas in his private work Beinash was trying to get to the emotional/psychological center of people, many commercial jobs, and fashion photography in particular, was about creating a false reality. He began to feel that he was moving backwards - losing connection with his subjects - and decided to take a break from shooting portraits, a move hastened by his discovery of Henri Cartier Bresson and travelling in Asia.

Bresson, and later Joel Sternfeld, enlightened Beinash to an alternative view of photography focusing not on the subject's emotional content, but on the possibilities offered by composition and suggestion. He was awakened to the manifestations of symmetry. Later, when he moved into shooting a larger format, the lack of human characters in this new work created a "possibility for fiction" that ignited his imagination. He moved into a period of shooting spaces and interiors illuminating the film-like quality of un-peopled streets, silent artist's studios, machines, etc. He likened these pieces to the opening shots of a film where scenes are pregnant with the possibility of action but the actors have not yet been introduced.

This was a very different and, in some ways, more academic period of refining his skill as a craftsman. Today, as he begins to reincorporate portraiture to his oeuvre, this formalist approach has had a very noticeable effect on the structure of his work. His new series returns to a study of people, and the intrinsic focus on character and subtlety, but with a heightened focus on compositional symmetry.

Beinash has continued to work commercially while developing his current series. In 2000, upon moving to New York City from South Africa, he was hired as Assistant Photography Editor at Black Book magazine where he worked until earlier this year. He continues to do photo editing projects for Art & Auction magazine. He has published work in Nylon, Black Book, Art & Auction, Domus, Australian Style and Baby magazines among others. His upcoming exhibition at the Sterilemind Gallery from October 31 - December 12, 2002 will present selections from his portraits, still lives and snap shots. This will be his first solo exhibition.

Adam Beinash photographs will be on view at the Sterilemind Gallery in New York City from October 31st to December 22th, 2002.

Image: Adam Beinash, InReality

Open Tuesday to Saturday, Noon to 7PM

Sterilemind Gallery -
230 Mulberry Street, New York, NY 10012
ph 212-941-6767 - fx 212-941-6244

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