It took half a century for Russ Rowland to find his passion. After working as a PR agent and dabbling at music, something clicked when the 53-year-old Manhattan resident started taking photos two years ago. Rowland is particularly fascinated by ordinary scenes that are often overlooked. “I think I’m like a little kid, really. Things still surprise me and tickle me,” he says.
While walking to Brighton Beach one day, he passed a cockeyed mailbox whose legs were bent like they were about to move. Going Postal, shot with a Nikon D90 and part of Rowland’s “Signs of Life” series, documents an object that harbors the ghost of human intervention. In “Signs of Life,” Rowland explores the unintentional messages in everyday settings. A bicycle sign painted on the road reveals a smiling face upside down; a sombrero hangs from a park bench, waiting like a lost child. “To me that’s a big part of what’s interesting in photography,” says Rowland. “It allows you to elevate something you might not stop to look at.”
Going Postal will be on display at Garrison Art Center in Garrison from September 10 through October 2, part of the third annual juried exhibition PHOTOcentric 2011. The image won the Juror’s Humorous Mention Award. (845) 424-3960; www.garrisonartcenter.org. Portfolio: www.rrsnapshop.com.
This article appears in September 2011.
