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Betty Dare Art Gallery

Man, Nature, & the Structure Between | July 23 – August 25, 2010

As the art world draws attention to artists who capture changes in the current architectural landscape, Betty Dare provides collectors with the opportunity to purchase work from artists who focus on the forgotten spaces of the urban fabric. In many cases, the artists exhibited may have been the last to preserve the essence of these decaying structures. Photography partners Thomas Harris and Matthew Messner, along with painter Terry Swafford, exhibit work that, amidst evolution, questions what we leave behind as individuals. Risking the venture into abandoned buildings, this group speaks to an ongoing theme: natures need to recycle, society’s collective venture to form structure, and an individual’s reliance on that structure to build legacy.

Photographers Tom Harris and Matthew Messner collaborate to photograph abandoned spaces before their destruction. Many of their photographs entice viewers to imagine the individuals that were once patrons of the locations. Their work draws attention to economic elements that may have prevented patrons from saving these structures, as the artists may have been the last visitors to help preserve the spaces they shot.

Tom Harris Born in Wisconsin, Tomas Harris completed his BFA in Photography at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, and currently works at a Chicago based architectural photography firm. Over the last half decade Harris’ work has been architecturally focused, both professionally and personally. While in college, Harris began shooting a series of photographs taken in forgotten spaces, later expanding his focus to the rust belt of the Midwest where this abandoned architecture was easily found. Relished by the adventure of exploring these sometimes dangerous sites, Harris found himself standing by his tripod in cathedrals with no roof and in factories with no floor. Professionally he travels the country photographing new buildings for designers and builders alike.

Matthew Messner Messner was raised in rural south central Wisconsin, graduated from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee (UWM) with a BS in architecture and a minor in art history, was deployed to fight in Afghanistan, and currently resides in Chicago. Messner was introduced to photography at a young age with family trips to Europe and summer school photography classes. Early in college, his work developed quickly with access to darkrooms and, more importantly, other passionate artists. With help from close friends, he co-founded the Society of Architectural Photography (SOAP) in 2006. This group has been passed down and is still meeting at the UWM School of Architecture and Urban Planning. It was in this time period that Messner began to explore the abandoned spaces of Milwaukee with fellow photographer Tom Harris. Messner notes, “What can only be called an obsession found us spending every free moment scouting new locations for our work.”

Terry Swafford Terry Swafford was raised in Missouri, educated at Rhode Island School of Design, and currently resides in Chicago. With reverence to tradition, Swafford’s execution is unique in that he approaches landscape paintings in a fluid and economical manner akin to drawing. He creates artworks that address issues of building and blight, cycles of use, and nature’s attempts at renewal within the built environment. According to Swafford, “Expressions of people are found in the ways we shape the land to service our needs and desires, and inversely by expressions of nature, which may disrupt those plans. There is a sensuousness and gracefulness observed in this gradual ruination.” The elongated, site-specific vignettes in his work constrain and direct the viewer to examine rich passages within commonplace environments. Not necessarily subject driven, Swafford is inspired by the carefully arranged juxtaposition of man, structure, and nature.

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