Alec Soth: Sleeping By The Mississippi

Exhibition Dates: October 3rd – November 14th, 2009
Opening Reception: Saturday, October 3rd, 6 – 9 pm in conjunction with Art for Art’s Sake
Location: Arthur Roger Gallery, 432 Julia Street, New Orleans, LA 70130
Gallery Hours: Monday – Saturday 10 am – 5 pm
Contact Info: 504.522.1999. www.arthurrogergallery.com

Arthur Roger Gallery is pleased to present, “Sleeping by the Mississippi,” an exhibition of the 2004 series of large chromogenic color photographs by Alec Soth that attained critical acclaim during its exhibition in both the Whitney Museum of American Art and São Paolo 2004 Biennials. The exhibition will be on view October 3rd – November 14th at the Arthur Roger Gallery located at 432 Julia Street. Soth will be present at the opening reception hosted by the gallery on Saturday, October 3rd from 6 to 9 pm in conjunction with “Art for Art’s Sake.”

Joshua, Angola State Prison, LA, 2002

Arthur Roger Gallery is pleased to present, “Sleeping by the Mississippi,” an exhibition of the 2004 series of large chromogenic color photographs by Alec Soth that attained critical acclaim during its exhibition in both the Whitney Museum of American Art and São Paolo 2004 Biennials. The exhibition will be on view October 3rd – November 14th at the Arthur Roger Gallery located at 432 Julia Street. Soth will be present at the opening reception hosted by the gallery on Saturday, October 3rd from 6 to 9 pm in conjunction with “Art for Art’s Sake.”

Alec Soth’s photographic work is rooted in traditions developed by the great documenters of the American experience, such as Robert Frank, Stephen Shore and Walker Evans. Critics have especially praised Soth’s impressive compositional skills and commented on the Old Master formality, poise and authority in his photographs.

Soth’s series “Sleeping by the Mississippi” is evolved during a period of five years in which he made several road trips from his home in Minnesota down the Mississippi River. This body of work is a deeply personal travel log that documents rarely seen areas of Middle America with portraits of eccentric people, unusual landscapes and curious interior still lifes from the frozen riverbanks of Minnesota to the Gulf”s dead zone at Venice, Louisiana. Using an 8″ x 10″ camera, Soth captured the stillness and quiet sensibility of his subjects, as well as their isolation, dreams and eccentricities.

Born in Minnesota, Soth received a Bachelor of Arts from Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York. His work is in the collection of The Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago, The San Francisco Museum of Contemporary Art, The Museum of Fine Arts in Houston and The Walker Center of Art in Minneapolis. He has received fellowships from the McKnight, Bush and Jerome Foundations and was the recipient of the 2003 Santa Fe Prize for Photography.

“Sleeping by the Mississippi” was published as a monograph by Steidl Press in 2004. Soth has also published “Niagra,” 2006; “Fashion Magazine,” 2007; “Dog Days, Bogota,” 2007; and “The Last Days of W,” 2008.

For additional information contact the gallery at 504.522.1999 or visit our Web site www.arthurrogergallery.com.