Andrea Robbins & Max Becher: Portraits

This exhibition and catalog present the first examination of the portrait photographs of Andrea Robbins and Max Becher. The artists' portraits - like their radical landscapes and city-scenes - are powerfully evocative, boldly subverting our expectations of the discipline of portraiture: Rather than "capturing" the visual essence of a sitter, they reveal identity to be multifarious, transitive, and culturally and historically bound. Robbins and Becher capture their subjects in ways that transform, enhance, and accentuate social and cultural meaning, They do so with the full complicity and respect of the people they photograph. They spend weeks living with each community they document. They immerse themselves in the stories of its citizens and history. They interview its residents and participate in their rituals and customs. They photograph them in various, active stages of work, play, and home life. Most important, they allow their subjects to represent themselves not only as they would like to be seen, but also in ways that illuminate the complexity of their humanity. By seeing identity as volatile, mutable, and contingent, these improbable portraits remind us that who we are is as much a matter of choice as destiny.