Atlanta-based photographer Jerry Siegel visited the Paul R. Jones Collection of American Art in downtown Tuscaloosa Thursday to speak about his photography collection “Uncommon Lens.”
“Uncommon Lens,” which has been displayed in the museum since Sept. 4, is a photography collection made up of portraits of Southern artists. Siegel, who was born and raised in Selma, Alabama, said he is very glad to exhibit the collection in his home state since the project originated from his connections in the South.
“The project started with portraits of my friends who are artists. Then I started shooting portraits of artists around Atlanta that I wanted to meet, people whose work I knew about,” Siegel said. “Then I moved on to artists in New Orleans, and the project grew from there.”
In addition to “Uncommon Lens,” Siegel presented on his earlier work photographing the Black Belt. He said he always finds the most interesting portraits in places he is familiar with.
“I’ve always referred to that work as ‘responding to home,’” Siegel said. “Some things I sought out from memories from my childhood, but other things I found just by driving around. These are just people I’ve stumbled upon, and I’ve always been interested in stopping and talking to those people, finding out who they are and what their story is.”
Andrew Morgan, a graduate student studying art history, said he attended Siegel’s exhibition as part of a class that focuses on portraiture. He said he enjoyed Siegel’s approach to finding and befriending his subjects.
“He talked about how the purpose of photography is getting to know people and making them comfortable with showing their true selves,” Morgan said. “That aligns with what we were talking about with how people are represented through their work and how they represent other people.”
For “Uncommon Lens,” Siegel said he wanted to represent both southern artists and artists who are late in their career. He said he hopes the display’s location at the University-associated museum helps a younger audience connect with his subjects.
“Just knowing who these artists are is interesting and important,” Siegel said. “Some of them have big reputations and a long history of exhibitions. Some of them are not as well known, but they’ve all spent their career making art.”
Destiny Doss, a graduate student studying painting, also attended the showing for a class. She said she felt a connection with Siegel’s photography because of their shared Southern identity.
“I grew up in Georgia, and I’ve been wanting to scope out the context of art in the South, which Jerry really displays in his photography,” Doss said. “I really want to try to get more into photography, as a painter, because reference photos are so important. In the photos showing the area [Siegel] grew up in, he really captures how the South looks.”
Siegel said many of the artists he photographed for “Uncommon Lens” are influenced by where they are from — including both the South and other places.
“They’re all considered Southern artists, but some were born here and spent lots of their careers in other places, while others were born somewhere else and have just spent so much time here in the South,” he said. “‘Southern artist’ is kind of a loose description. There is not really one thing that is ‘Southern art.’”
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