Texas Learning & Computation Center - University of Houston

The Visual Studies program at the University of Houston is proud to present photography legends Frederick Baldwin and Wendy Watriss, co-founders of Fotofest, who will showcase 30 years of work and the release of their newest book at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston on October 27.

The evening will be the first time since ...the 1983 founding of Fotofest that Baldwin and Watriss will present their own photography in Houston. The talk is based on an extensive exhibition of their work presented earlier this year by the Musee de la Photographie in Charleroi, Belgium.

“This is a rare and special opportunity to hear Fred and Wendy talk about their work,” said Visual Studies program director Tracy Xavia Karner. “Before cofounding FotoFest, Fred and Wendy documented three decades of American society and demonstrated how images can be used to bring about awareness and promote change.”

Their new book includes images from the civil rights movement, the treatment of Vietnam veterans, and an extensive period of work documenting rural Texas.

In Texas, Watriss has said, “we learned first-hand, in a very visceral way, how the culture and social habits of societies develop and shape themselves, and through them, how the values and character of the country is formed – the influence and longevity of heritage, the immigrant experience, feelings about land, religious practice, class, race, economic struggle, attitudes about education, and attitudes about government. We learned how different historical experiences shaped the behavior of people and how the nature of geography and land helped shape people’s economic history, which in turn affects how they look at politics and governance. … Although what we discovered was fascinating, we learned that there is nothing romantic about rural life. We experienced the ubiquitousness of people’s struggle. The American dream has not come easy, if at all, to many people who have settled in this country.”


WHAT: Looking at the U.S., 1957-1986: From the Civil Rights Movement to the Vietnam War,
and 16 Years Photographing in Texas – Frederick Baldwin and Wendy Watriss

Introduction by Anne Wilkes Tucker, Gus and Lyndall Wortham Curator of Photography, Museum of Fine Arts Houston

Sponsored by Visual Studies at the University of Houston, Photo Forum, Museum of Fine Arts Houston, FotoFest, and the Houston Center for Photography.

Free and open to the public.

WHEN: Tuesday, October 27, 2009
6:30 p.m. Visual presentation and discussion
7:30 p.m. Book signing and reception

WHERE: Museum of Fine Arts Houston, Brown Auditorium Theater
1001 Bissonnet , Houston TX

MORE INFO: Visual Studies on Facebook: www.facebook.com/visualstudies
Visual Studies Events: www.visualstudies.uh.edu/events
Museum of Fine Arts Houston: www.mfah.org
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