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Thresholds: The Photography of William Anderson
Through November 9
Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Gaines Foyer Gallery, Broyles Arts Center
The Westminster Schools
1424 West Paces Ferry Road,
Atlanta 30327
404-355-8673
www.westminster.net

Powerful documentary blends with finely-tuned art

By Debra Wolf

Thresholds: The Photography of William Anderson features thirty-two images offering a slice of African-American experience in the deep South.

Spanning four decades of work, the photographs on view originate in William Anderson’s roots and personal experience. Born during the Great Depression, he grew up in Selma, Alabama, where he came of age during the burgeoning Civil Rights movement. In keeping with the theme of this show – thresholds – selections focus on societal and psychological barriers and transitions. Images often include windows, doorways, porches and even human chains, emphasizing the metaphorical aspects of work that runs the gamut from socio-political commentary to fine art photography.

Like Walker Evans, Anderson often frames his subject matter in richly textured architectural settings. The photographer uses vertical, horizontal, and diagonal lines as key elements, in both structures and materials. Wood, brick, tar paper, and stone all add aesthetic interest, while evoking essential qualities of wear, fragility, and endurance, much like his human subjects.

One Minute to Rest © William Anderson

Anderson offsets the linear with rounded forms, particularly in his portraiture. Soft contours – light cast on a cheek, the top of a shoulder, a baby’s head – create a satisfying balance to hard-edged geometries. (more…)

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