“History Re-Imaged”: A Brief Introduction to The Artist and the Exhibition Alan M. Richards y artwork is photomontage. It took me quite a while to actually figure out what to l my artwork since it wasn't pure photography, collage, painting, or drawing. tually, it was a combination of all those things. Over time, however, I gradually me to the realization that photomontage was a good descriptor. y method of creation is not simply about pasting things together as in a collage. her, it's about combining and refining many elements to form a picture that might serious, bizarre, surreal, or humorous. My goal is to have the viewers interpret the w image (re-image) based on their thoughts. y work often uses vintage images that have meaning to me on a personal and otional level. A good number of the images used in my works are derived from the fice of War Information (OWI), the Farm Services Administration (FSA), and from mmercial photographers during that time in and about the WWII years. The OWI s established to document life on the home front between 1941-1945. The FSA eceded the OWI.
The OWI and FSA hired photographers. One such photographer was Marjory Collins who photographed life in New York City. I have used her photos as prime elements in much of my work. Other photographers whose images I have used are John Vachon, John Collier, Jr., Jacobs Fenno, Albert Barden, and others. I have also used other sources such as my own photos, clips, and drawings. None of the images used have any known copyright issues since they are all within the public domain. In this series of work I try to maintain the feeling of that era. I do not seek to alter the work so much that it takes away from what was. The re-imaged work is a rebirth of what was eighty-odd years ago. The smaller black and white photos are the original photos from which the final re- imaged picture evolved. There are also other images or clips that I included to further develop and enhance the final work. I invite the viewer of each re-imaged picture to make up his or her own story. This was a work of gratitude to those who were selfless during wartime, and the years just before and after WWII. It has been called the "Greatest Generation." As usual, I am indebted to Ellen, my wife, who has helped me edit this work. She has pointed out my inappropriate use of commas for many years. I never seem to learn, but she's there to set me straight.
s image is based on two vintage photographs. The first black and white photo s that of a man having breakfast at a venue presumably in Queens. The board hind him showed movie theaters and the movies that were playing at the time 942). One theater, the RKO Keiths, was located in Flushing at the end of Main eet. The waiter worked at John's Restaurant on East 12th Street in the East Village. s was in January, 1943. The photographer was Marjory Collins (1912-1985). e was a well-known photojournalist who was best known for covering the home nt during WWII. She completed about 50 assignments for the OWI concerning American way of life and support for the war effort.
What do you see happening in the re-imaged picture?"
ist's Notes & Thoughts about "Business Formal."
e original black and white photo (upper right) really caught my eye. It was a ene that was familiar to me from my childhood. The annotated image from the WI was that of the 3rd Avenue El at 17th Street. To that scene, I added the sinessman walking. Again, he was very familiar to me having had relatives of the me generation and demeanor. In the "Business Formal" re-imaged picture some tures have been added. I like to have surprises in my works... so look for them. e photographer was Marjory Collins.
e photographer for the original black and white picture (below right) is known. What is known is that the image was taken in June, 1943 at ackey's Creamery located in Sausalito, California. The original picture caught attention because of the clarity of the image and its wonderful representation hat time period. In my re-image "Counter Intelligence," I sought to focus on o individuals and simplify the background to create a new story open to erpretation.
s re-image was derived from many elements. The main element was the black d white photo of a storefront in Asheboro, NC. It appears to be a men's clothing re. The image was taken by Albert Barden (1888-1953). Mr. Barden was a mmercial photographer whose work was primarily based in North Carolina. His rks were quite varied including portraiture, advertising, events, funerals, and rastructure. e women who are window shopping in my re-imaged picture were actually otographed in a variety store in Southington, CT. The photographer was Jacobs nno and the photo was taken in May, 1942. Mr. Fenno, whose real
me was Charles Fenno Jacobs, was ruited by Edward Steichen as a US avy photographer during the war. er the war he worked as a photographer for Fortune Magazine vering various parts of the world.
e other elements of the picture were entially clips of cats and fish which re placed in and about an aquarium.
his re-imaged work I sought to keep things simple in terms of color and style. I ose to use a palette similar to that of the artist David Hockney.
e two main black and white photos for this montage were taken by Albert rden and reside in the Archives of North Carolina. The man is J.C. Ellington, identified by the photographer, and that image was taken in August, 1951. e house belonged to the Richard Ball family. The original picture was taken in 38. The woman in recline was an image I had saved for future use.
particularly pleased with "Reading Beauty" due to its simplicity and ability to cit narratives from viewers.
ist Notes and thoughts about "Summer in the City."
o black and white images caught my attention. The first was that of a man holding ht ice cream cones. I wondered for whom they were intended. Perhaps some kids? t-shirt was typical of the style of the day. The street was Houston Street looking uth on a Sunday morning in September, 1942. The sign on the building (upper ht) referred to the bonds sold to finance the war effort. Notice that the final work ntains many more elements than the originals, and there are some surprises as ll. Both black and white images were taken by Marjory Collins.
lt that this re-imaged picture could stand on its own without the addition of too ny elements. I changed the background and the floor. She was a waitress at arconi's Restaurant on Mulberry Street in Little Italy. She put on an extemporaneous nce for the customers on New Year's Eve of December, 1942. The event, their nual New Year's Eve party, was hosted by the Di Contanzos family (below, lower ), the owners of the restaurant.
s photomontage is composed of three separate pictures. The first was the elevated in station at 76th Street and 3rd Avenue at 8 A.M. (bottom left). This station is long ne. The two women in the foreground were actually located in Penn Station awaiting ir train. The man in the foreground was at another "El" station. An interesting servation is how nearly all of the riders were reading newspapers. Today iPhones d tablets would be the preferred mode of gathering news. All of the images used in s montage were taken by Marjorie Collins between August and October, 1942. This ture is the first of a diptych.
s image is the second half of the diptych. The AM version served as the sic template for this work. All people from the AM version were removed, d many other features were changed as well. The lone man pictured in the ture was a farmer who had come to the town of Manheim in Lancaster unty, Pennsylvania. The photographer was Marjory Collins and the picture he man was taken in November, 1942.
e original black and white pictures were taken on Mott Street in the Little Italy ction of New York City. These images were taken in 1942. The people on the escapes were watching a parade and flag-raising ceremony in honor of the ys in the neighborhood who were then serving in the army. Having been born he Bronx and with relatives in buildings such as these, this picture was one of membrance for me. Social media at the time was simply talking out the window.
New ?"
ntral Park, 1942
ist's Notes & Thoughts about "Lost in Thought."
s picture came about after seeing two black and white images of interest to me. e first (bottom right) were the park sitters. This was in September, 1942 and they re sitting on the Central Park Mall on a Sunday afternoon. In the original photo buildings surrounding the park were visible. The girl shown in the upper right ture was the daughter of a physician named Wynn. Her first name was Janet. ey were a Czech-American family who lived on 72nd Street on the Upper East de.
s image was primarily derived from two main photos. The men were at the World's Fair" in Tunbridge, Vermont. They were chatting with each other in a y that reminded me of some sort of conflict. What attracted me about them s, of course, their body language and by the shadows which were cast on ir faces by the brims of their hats. The street scene was an image of a street ner in lower Manhattan. I reworked the street corner to have a more vintage k, which fit the period of the men. The men were photographed by Jack lano (1914-1997).
s re-imaged picture was based on two black and white photos. In my mind these n had been meeting for years in this park to enjoy each other's company. The two ls on the lower left of the monkey bars are, in fact, Janet and Marie Wynn (below ). The picture was taken in October, 1942 in Central Park. They were the children Dr. Wynn, a physician on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. The black and white oto of the men on the bench (below right) was that of five Norwegian men. The oto was taken in Grimstad, Norway in July, 1967.
Sunday in the Park with Georges
m an admirer of the work of Edward Hopper. I was fortunate enough to ve one of my pictures displayed at the Edward Hopper House and Museum Nyack, NY. So, when I came across Jacobs Fenno's (1904-1975) black d white image (lower right) I was very impressed. It captured the feelings d form that I was looking for in my work. The picture was taken in uthington, CT in May of 1942. In the original black and white picture, re was no house nor woman on the right. I placed those elements using other Fenno image. The woman was identified as Mrs. John Chimbor who d immigrated from Iceland to the US circa 1922. The man sitting on the rch was a photo I took of a guy sitting on a table at a flea market in New sey.
s image is one half of a diptych, the other being "Southington, P.M."
s image is the second half of the diptych, the first being "Southington, A.M." It also based on the work of Jacobs Fenno. For this image, the A.M. version ved as a template. The man was a perfect subject for the montage as was the g.
ist's Notes & Thoughts about "The Joke."
s re-image is a combination of two very disparate black and white pictures by otographer Marjory Collins. The first (upper right) shows a woman in a pew at a dnight mass at St. Dominick's church on Sullivan Street in lower Manhattan. The ture was taken in December, 1942. What peaked my interest was her dour pression and her no-nonsense demeanor. The second picture (bottom right) was t of a kosher wine merchant on the Lower East Side passing the time with a local bbi. e re-imaged picture was quite a bit different from either of the original images. ting the two people together and placing them in a totally different setting led me have some rather odd interpretations. I'll leave the rest up to the viewers to erpret and add their own stories.
s re-imaged picture was based primarily upon one black and white image and e photo I had taken. The first photo (upper right) was of the elevated 3rd Ave e. Although the Office of War Information claimed that this picture was taken he East 70s, I know that it was actually taken between 88th and 89th Streets 3rd Avenue. When I first saw this image I noticed that there was a vertical re sign with the name "Wankel's." Coincidentally, Mr. Wankel was a patient mine. My office was around the corner on 89th Street. Wankel's Hardware s there from 1896-2022. The "El" is long gone but the building was very ognizable having been painted in red, white, and blue colors. In the below ture notice the vertical silver line. That is, in fact, the side of the sign that was esent in the black and white image.
e woman in the final work was ually a photo that I took while ting the Antiques Garage on th Street. The Garage has closed ce the picture was taken.
This re-imaged picture was based primarily upon one black and white image and one photo I had taken. The first photo (upper right) was of the elevated 3rd Ave Line. Although the Office of War Information claimed that this picture was taken in the East 70s, I know that it was actually taken between 88th and 89th Streets on 3rd Avenue. When I first saw this image I noticed that there was a vertical store sign with the name "Wankel's." Coincidentally, Mr. Wankel was a patient of mine. My office was around the corner on 89th Street. Wankel's Hardware was there from 1896-2022. The "El" is long gone but the building was very recognizable having been painted in red, white, and blue colors. In the below picture notice the vertical silver line. That is, in fact, the side of the sign that was present in the black and white image.
The woman in the final work was actually a photo that I took while visiting the Antiques Garage on 26th Street. The Garage has closed since the picture was taken.
ist Notes and Thoughts about "Don't Tread on Me."
s re-image is based primarily upon two photos by Walker Evans (1903-1975). . Evans was a renowned photographer and photojournalist who is best known his work for the Farm Security Administration (FSA) during the Great pression. The images shown here (upper and middle right) were first published he Summer of 1938. They were taken on East 61st Street in Manhattan mewhere between 1st and 3rd Avenues. ad taken a picture of a woman sitting in a folding chair years ago, but had not nd perfect place to use her in my montages. However, if you look closely you uld see a new countenance on the reworked picture.
ist's Notes & Thoughts about "Tough Guys."
s re-image was primarily based upon a photo taken in December, 1942. The man tured is Joe Levy, the owner of a nightclub on Allen Street on the Lower East Side. me, he was the perfect representation of a club owner, complete with cigar. ce he gave me a tough-guy vibe, I thought that the picture could be enhanced by cing him in a window accompanied by another tough-guy. Turns out that the other gh guy was a Bulldog of a similar countenance.
dded many elements to the re-imaged work to enhance the picture.
ist's Notes & Thoughts about "What's So Damn Funny?"
e original black and white picture (bottom) was taken on a weekend morning in 42 in Central Park. It was a mundane picture showing five people just sitting and oying the morning sunshine. Since I'm always looking for an interesting scene, I ose two of the women and placed them together on one bench. As you can see, e woman was reading the comics while the other was sitting with a smirk on her e. For humor, I decided to add in some Disney-ish characters. The title, "What's Damn Funny?," reflects the attitude of the lady on the left.
hree Kool Kats" was a combination of three main photos from entirely different ckgrounds. The man sitting on the porch with his legs up was photographed in gust, 1940 by Louise Rosskan (1910-2003). He did his sitting in Vergennes, rmont at what appears to be a Rotary International Meeting Hall. By contrast, the nding man was characterized as a "bum." The photograph was taken at Third enue and 14th Street in New York City. He claimed to be a Scottish Comedian. The otographer was Marjory Collins, and the picture was taken in September, 1942. hough from entirely different places, I felt that the two me worked well together for intended purpose. The cat was a clip from an old black and white photo. What racted me to this photo was the cat's stare, which game me the feeling of a self- ured being. He was definitely a real "Kool Kat."
s re-image is a piece based primarily upon the three black and white otos on the bottom of this page. They were taken by Marjory Collins in gust, 1942. The place was Penn Station in New York City. I chose ious people from the original photographs and placed them around my maged station. My station was based upon computer aided design awings (CAD) located at the bottom of the page. Other elements were ded including the light fixtures, the shadows, the clock, and all the oring necessary to produce an image depicting an evening scene.
s re-imaged picture has a lot of interesting aspects. The men sitting at the table wer right) were actually in a Turkish restaurant on Allen Street on the Lower st Side. The year was 1943. In the re-imaged picture, I changed the items on table, the entire background, and added a window to give the appearance of king into the restaurant. If you look carefully at the original black and white ture you'll notice another man who is not in the re-imaged version. e waiter (upper right) was of great interest to me. He was a waiter at the Sixty- ht Restaurant on Fifth Avenue at Thirteenth Street in the East Village. The year s January, 1943. This location is of interest to me because it's only a block ay from the Salmagundi Art Club to which I am a member.
s image turned out to be more surrealistic than expected...to me a happy cident.
e original black and white photos for this piece were taken by two photographers. hn Vachon (1914-1975) took the image on the upper right. These children were ying with toy boats in Grundy Center, Iowa. The picture was taken in April, 40. The second picture (middle) was taken by Marjory Collins in Central Park, w York City in September, 1942. I drew the background, the water, and all the er details. hn Vachon was a world-traveling photographer whose work with the Farm Security ministration (FSA) was part of the New Deal. He contributed to LOOK Magazine well.
ist's Notes & Thoughts about "Inner Child."
s re-image, "Inner Child," is somewhat different from the other images I have esented. During my career as an audiologist in New York City one of my favorite tients was Gene Moore. He was the famous designer who had decorated any's windows at Christmas for many years. In his book, "My Time at Tiffany's," e of the pictures showed him as a young man in a cardboard box (upper right). his book he explained that he was exasperated with pressure at work and nted some peace and quiet. I used that image plus another image of a woman ing on a window box. As you can see, he now has cookies and milk. Interpret as u will. I would estimate his picture to be in the early 1940's and the woman's to earlier.
ne was a wonderful man and I am truly happy to have known him.
e black and white photos of the people (below) were taken in September, 42 by OWI artist John Collier, Jr. (1913-1992). Mr. Collier is best known for use of photography as a tool in anthropology and ethnography. His images re widely used in textbooks and other sources. The people (below) were on rain leaving from Richwood, West Virginia to upstate New York. They were gratory workers who were needed to fill the shortage of farm workers during war years.
s Fast Burgers was actually a White Tower... a precursor to many of the dern fast-food restaurants. The image was taken by John Collier, Jr. in 1941 Amsterdam, New York. The store employees were from a McClellans's in orth Carolina in 1941. The latter picture was taken by Albert Barden 888-1953) who was a commercial photographer. Mr. Barden did not work the OWI or FSA to my knowledge, but his works are to be found in the chives of the State of North Carolina during that time period. you may notice, the background buildings are different from the original oto. I drew in these buildings, placed the man with his dog, and added a ivery bicycle.
Artist Notes and Thoughts about "A Delicate Balance at the Ball Factory."
This re-imaged work was based on a photograph taken by John Vachon (below).
The black and white picture of the workman with the hand truck was taken at a fruit terminal warehouse in Chicago, Illinois. The year of the picture was 1941. These fruit shipments were bought at auction and shipped as soon as the drivers and loaders were notified. I thought that the picture of the loader was a bit mundane, so I sought to give it more interest by putting the balls on the hand truck. They did add color to the piece.
e original black and white image was taken in 1941 by Albert Barden. The ce was McLellan's in Raleigh, NC. It was a five and dime store with a lunch unter similar to Woolworths. McClellan's opened for business in 1928 and sed in 1960. It sold household items and War Bonds to finance the war ort.
e man at the counter in the re-imaged picture was actually playing a piano he 1930s.
her than having the indoor menu signs shown behind the workers in the ck and white picture, I chose to have a window behind them to the outside eet and buildings.
ist's Notes & Thoughts about "Traveler's Eve."
s re-imaged work was mainly drawn from two distinct photos. The first was that of o children learning to dance. This was an OWI image, but the photographer was identified. What is known is that the photo took was shot at the Tower Hill School Wilmington, DE in 1942. The second black and white photo of the hotel bedroom s similarly unidentified. ne looks at the left window of the room, there is a silhouetted figure of a woman h an umbrella. That image was from a series called "Wet Weather," and was en in New South Wales (NSW) Australia in March, 1939. Photographer known.
What would your story be?"
Riders
s re-image is based on a black and white photo of a car dealership (lower ht). The dealership was called the Harmon Motor Company and was ablished in 1946 by A.J. Harmon. It was a Lincoln-Mercury franchise. The ture was taken by Albert Barden in the early 1950s based on the car models in showroom. The people in the re-imaged picture were taken from various urces. The man standing in the front of the dealership was Mr. J.C. Ellington, as ntified by Albert Barden. The other people were taken from various clips that I ve used over the years. To make this image more personal, I altered the alership's name to "Al's." Why not?
hose to replace the original cars with Buicks because of their distinctive ing during that era.
What might your story be?"
e "Gas 'N Go" service station is a compilation of a number of pictures. The st interesting story is that of the attendant at the gas pump. His name was erman Blowe, and he was the owner/operator of Blowe's Esso Service tion in Raleigh, North Carolina. The picture was taken by Albert Barden in e, 1947. All of the logos were ESSO, but I changed them. The truck and the n in front of the truck were also taken by Mr, Barden in 1948. e man hosing down the truck was taken in September, 1939 by John chon (1914-1975). The truck had just returned from a run from Minneapolis, nnesota to Chicago, Illinois.
e "Golden Beans Coffee Shop" was a conglomeration of many separate clips d elements. The main element in the picture was that of a "Chock Full 'O ts" counter. The photographer is unknown, but it is believed to have been en between 1938-1945. The place was Brooklyn Heights, New York. There re a good number of "Chock Full 'O Nuts" in New York City. I'm not sure w the China Palace restaurant was located with reference to the coffee use. In any event, I changed the "Chock Full 'O Nut's" to the "Golden ans" and changed the roof as well. I also placed some more people in the ene than the original. e building that was above the "Golden Beans" was shot in August, 1940 in ddlebury, Vermont. The photographer was Louise Rosskam (1910-2003). hat attracted me to this photo was the man in the window, who I presume s an attorney.
s image consists primary of two images. The first is of the two girls in Roanoke, VA October, 1942. The picture was taken by OWI photographer Howard Lieberman. ese girls made weekly rounds collecting scrap metal for the war effort. The second age was taken by Jack Delano (1914-1997) in May, 1940. It was a hamburger op in Durham, North Carolina. This image was taken for the Farm Security Agency A).
e Card Trick utilizes images taken outside the US. The main image was taken by stralian (State of New South Wales (NSW) photographer Norman Herfort in ovember, 1938 (lower left). It was a high-speed photograph of a man shuffling aling cards. His face was too dark to use so I chose another from a hat ad in 44. In the latter, the man is shown wearing a cotton twill Fedora bucket hat. I ded glasses and saved the original hat. The young man was taken from a photo Colman Doyle (1932-), an famous Irish photographer who documented life in orthern Ireland. The photo is found in the National Library of Ireland (NLI). The ung man who appears in "The Card Trick" is circled.
s work is based on one central photo found in the NYC Municipal Archives. The ture was taken on May 18, 1940. The headline on the man's newspaper reads azi Army Now 75 Miles From Paris." The photo was taken at 40th Street and 6th enue. The other aspects of "The Man in the Red Suit" were taken from various other urces. The man with the handcart was an image from John Vachon. The man was a rehouse worker in Chicago (1941). The woman and walking older man were taken m other images.
e Celebration is a conglomerate piece consisting of three main images and much awing and painting. The original concept came about from a TV show. A lady s sitting at a kitchen table and it caught my eye. I took my camera and captured image directly from the screen. The couple seen in the picture are from two parate images. The first was the Assistant Supervisor of Highways in Lancaster, PA. was taken by Marjory Collins in November, 1942. The woman was a waitress at arconi's Restaurant celebrating New Years Eve of 1942. You may recognize the man since she is on the cover of this book.
Contact Information
Alan M Richards Website: alanrichardsart.com Instagram: @amrichardsart Facebook: alan.richards.58760 Phone: (516)-652-6660
Restaurant Restaurant
Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92Made with FlippingBook Digital Publishing Software