In 2007, American photographer Sharon Core (born 1965) encountered the work of the early nineteenth-century American still-life painter Raphael Peale (1774–1825). Peale’s images of fruit, cakes and vegetables are famed for their uncanny realism, and they inspired Core to undertake a series of photographs titled Early American, a brilliant exploration of trompe l’oeil’s relationship to photography, and of photography’s relationship to the past. Core replicates as closely as possible the subject matter, lighting and compositional characteristics of Peale’s paintings. She describes an extraordinarily intensive preparation for the project, researching and acquiring period porcelain and glass and growing, from heirloom seeds, varieties of fruits and vegetables that were in existence in the early nineteenth century. “Through these efforts,” she writes, “I hoped to achieve a mirroring of Peale’s painstaking painting process, and the themes that lie under their surfaces.” This volume reproduces the 31 images comprising this ambitious enterprise.
Featured image, "Carrot and Squash" (2007), is reproduced from Sharon Core: Early American.
PRAISE AND REVIEWS
Time
Richard Lacayo
"The point of departure for Core's irresistible photos is the many still-life arrangements of food painted in the early 19th century by American artist Raphaelle Peale… Core's pictures are what all food should be: scrumptious."
Time
Richard Lacayo
The point of departure for Core's irresistable photos is the many still-life arrangements of food painted in the early 19th century by the American artist Raphaelle Peale. Some of Core's images-- chromogenic color prints of extraordinary richness-- are dead on reproductions of Peale originals; others combine elements from several canvases. Spotlighted before sober, dark backdrops, trout has never looked more silvery. Berries have never had such glistening gravitas. Core's pictures are what food should be: Scrumptious.
"Is it a painting or a photograph? Vintage or contemporary? Real or fake?" asks Judith Puckett-Rinella, reviewing the work of Sharon Core in The New York Times' T Magazine. "One thing is for certain — these works are undoubtedly beautiful. In her latest series, Early American, the photographer Sharon Core explores the works of the American still-life painter Raphaelle Peale (1774-1825). In order to create these old-master-style images, Core used fruit that she grew in her own greenhouse (which she refurbished at her house in upstate New York) and authentic period porcelain and tableware that she collected." Featured image, the chromogenic print "Fruit" (2007), is reproduced from Core's new monograph from Radius Books, which launches with a booksigning at Yancey Richardson Gallery, New York, on November 28. continue to blog
FORMAT: Hbk, 11 x 12.5 in. / 84 pgs / 31 color. LIST PRICE: U.S. $50.00 LIST PRICE: CANADA $67.5 GBP £45.00 ISBN: 9781934435465 PUBLISHER: Radius Books AVAILABLE: 11/30/2012 DISTRIBUTION: D.A.P. RETAILER DISC: TRADE PUBLISHING STATUS: Out of stock indefinitely AVAILABILITY: Not available TERRITORY: WORLD
In 2007, American photographer Sharon Core (born 1965) encountered the work of the early nineteenth-century American still-life painter Raphael Peale (1774–1825). Peale’s images of fruit, cakes and vegetables are famed for their uncanny realism, and they inspired Core to undertake a series of photographs titled Early American, a brilliant exploration of trompe l’oeil’s relationship to photography, and of photography’s relationship to the past. Core replicates as closely as possible the subject matter, lighting and compositional characteristics of Peale’s paintings. She describes an extraordinarily intensive preparation for the project, researching and acquiring period porcelain and glass and growing, from heirloom seeds, varieties of fruits and vegetables that were in existence in the early nineteenth century. “Through these efforts,” she writes, “I hoped to achieve a mirroring of Peale’s painstaking painting process, and the themes that lie under their surfaces.” This volume reproduces the 31 images comprising this ambitious enterprise.
