Two exhibits defining what it means to be an American in the 20th and 21st centuries have opened in the Herter Art Gallery at the University of Massachusetts.
“American Pie” is an exhibition of works by British documentary photographer Martin Parr presenting an unconventional way of looking at American culture. “It’s an American Thing” is a collection of works by 14 photographers focusing on American popular culture in the last century.
Herter Art Gallery director Trevor Richardson brought the exhibits to UMass, where they opened in October. He had dreamed of bringing a Martin Parr exhibit to UMass for many years in order to showcase it to a new group of people, but the timing was never right for all the photos to be together. Eventually, a gallery in New York reached out to him about arranging an exhibition.
Parr’s photographs are known for their sarcastic view of looking at American culture. A photo of the Mall of America, located in Minnesota, shows the mall as “a cathedral to consumption,” said Richardson.
A photo of a breakfast plate in Las Vegas is another example of Parr’s critical eye. The plate is filled with food: a bagel, waffle, eggs, sausage, yogurt – more food than one could ever expect to eat in one sitting. As the exhibit description says, “the images pointedly bring us to the edge of pleasure and discomfort.”
Another photo is of empty hangers against a blank wall. “He has a real eye for pattern and color, for finding beauty in things you wouldn’t expect,” said Richardson. “That’s something 90 percent of people wouldn’t think to photograph. They’d walk right past it.”
Other photos featured in the exhibit show four surly waitresses at an Atlanta diner, an out-of-place couple ignoring each other in a Las Vegas hotel lobby and a Minnesota fisherman standing outside his ice fishing hut.
When Richardson went to see the Parr photos, he stumbled upon a number of other photographs he thought would be perfect for a companion exhibition. Thanks to the Staley-Wise Gallery in New York, which specializes in vintage photos, the exhibit came together under the title “It’s an American Thing.”
“I thought it was the type of exhibit that would potentially appeal to lots of people,” said Richardson. “Everyone knows who these people are: Elvis, JFK, Eisenhower.”
The photos showcase the celebrities who dominated the later 20th century in the United States. Audrey Hepburn, James Dean, Louis Armstrong and Aretha Franklin are all included.
“It’s a collection of photos of individuals who collectively define United States culture,” he said.
An elegantly posed photo of John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy in Hyannisport hangs next to a photo of actor Paul Newman cooking in his boxers in the kitchen of his Beverly Hills home while his wife cradles their dog.
“I liked the contrast between those two photos,” said Richardson.
Another photo shows a naked Joe Namath, quarterback for the New York Jets, shaving in his team’s locker room. Nicknamed “Broadway Joe,” Namath was known for his partying antics off the field. “He was the first real celebrity sports star,” said Richardson.
The United States had a profound affect on popular culture in the 20th century, and that’s what Richardson hopes to show with “It’s an American Thing.” He acknowledges that it is very different from Parr’s critical eye in “American Pie” but believes the contrast between the two is what makes them a great pairing.
Eleanor Harte can be reached at [email protected].
