True Fiction

Opening reception, Thu., Oct. 14, 6-9 p.m., free, through Nov. 27, Philadelphia Photo Arts Center, 1400 N. American St., Suite 103, 215-232-5678, philaphotoarts.org.

by Daniella Wexler

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Published: Oct 13, 2010

[ photography ]

Can we trust a photograph in 2010? With the proliferation of digital imaging programs like Photoshop, how can we view photographs as accurate representations of reality anymore? In the Philadelphia Photo Arts Center's new exhibition, nine photographers explore the space between truth and fantasy through 21 of their own images. The viewer's job is to try to figure out which photos are telling the truth and which "documentary" photos are actually staged. Big names on the roster include The New York Times Magazine's Taryn Simon, Beate Gutschow and Gregory Crewdson, who's known for surreal depictions of American suburbia. Uses vary, "extending anywhere from setting up the shot all the way like Greg Crewdson, to Yasser Agour's use of downloaded imagery manipulated by digital technology," says PPAC's executive director, Sarah Stolfa, who hopes to promote the center's philosophy that analog and digital photography aren't mutually exclusive.

Opening reception, Thu., Oct. 14, 6-9 p.m., free, through Nov. 27, Philadelphia Photo Arts Center, 1400 N. American St., Suite 103, 215-232-5678, philaphotoarts.org.

Depth of Field
Body Mind and Hair
March of the Humannequins
Kaleidoscope
The Forest for the Trees
Where's the Beef?
The Word
Light Drift
Many Entendres
HOMIESAPIENS/Atypical
The Big Sea