Motukakho Island by Derek Henderson

Hamish Eli Adlam, Reid's Farm by Derek Henderson

We've been obsessing about Derek Henderson's photographs since he entered Hey, Hot Shot! in 2008, winning a spot in the group exhibition that year. After the show, Kevin Simmons, Leanne Hema and Troy Burton, Reid's Farm hung in our then teeny-tiny office, attracting everyone's attention and affection. Unable to get the work out of our heads and hearts, Jen, Jeffrey and I began plotting Derek's NYC solo debut, meeting with him over the winter, gushing over Mercy Mercer, the book, in its solemn, gray, linen-bound glory, and charting the dates. Two Fridays ago, Mercy Mercer, the exhibition featuring twelve color photographs, opened amid friends and fans at the JBG. And finally, today, I (it's Sara) have the pleasure of introducing all of you to Hamish Eli Adlam, Reid's Farm and Motukakaho Island. Our celebration is in full swing!

Both images are from the book (Motukakaho Island is also on view at the gallery). It opens with a series of landscapes and interiors; the first person we are introduced to is a blind girl. Without gloating, without being unkind or crass, the portrait suggests the good fortune we have to be gazing at these photos, and in a larger sense, at the world in general. It's closely sequenced with the sister image to Motukakaho Island, an almost overwhelming, crowded frame of fragrant hydrangeas, serving (I think) as a reminder that looking at these photographs engages all of the senses--sight does not operate alone.

On seeing it, I was terribly disappointed that I either couldn't remember or didn't know what hydrangeas smelled like--even after spending four years in the Pacific Northwest where they are abundant--but the image embedded itself, a rich replacement for my lack of memory. Other scents are rife throughout the book: woodsmoke, drifting from campfires--or in Hamish Eli Adlam, Reid's Farm, a stove--and the smell of damp, mossy air.

The water--as it dissolves above the river, cools wading feet, condenses on grass, mists over edges and sparkles through narrow passages, is omnipresent. In a way, it echoes Derek--or maybe it's the other way around--Derek follows the water's lead, as a sort of unobtrusive narrator. It imparts the feeling that the narrator is omniscient, presenting everything, all the details, for us to absorb through sight, sound, smell, touch and taste--as if taking these photos too, was a task for all of Derek's senses.

With that I'll leave you till next week. We'll be back with more news about the quickly approaching Affordable Art Fair in NYC. As Jen mentioned, we have lots of good stuff in store for all of you who are in dire need of getting your art up on your walls. Mark your calendars for the following Saturday and Sunday, October 2nd and 3rd--more details soon!