Westward, ho!

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Seth Dickerman

Into the West

Through Dec. 2

Pittsburgh… //

Seth Dickerman

Into the West

Through Dec. 2

Pittsburgh Filmmakers

(412) 681-5449

When one thinks of the western landscape, what often come to mind are desolate scenes of craggy rock face, sand dunes and cacti. But this setting is diverse enough to deserve many different portrayals, and right now at Pittsburgh Filmmakers there is one unlike anything you’d expect.

Seth Dickerman’s exhibit “Into the West” gives us his take on what the West has to offer, in particular an endless sky. Dickerman does not use his photographs to record still images, but instead makes movies with each picture. He exposes the film for two to four minutes, moving the camera slowly as the scenery moves and changes. All of these photographs were taken just after the sun had set or in moonlight, so this makes for gorgeous colors and patterns on a large scale.

These photographs are very dreamlike and expressionistic in their style; the artist lists Romantic Expressionist painters as one of his influences. At times his photographs veer toward “the postcard picture” – overwhelmed by their subject and trite in their conception.

For instance, “Coral Beach,” a series of five panels showing the progression of a sunset, seems to say, “Wish you were here!” But you can’t ignore the beauty in the colors stretching across the panels, moving from light to dark. “Red Headlands” is similar in its almost overeager perfection, although the sweeping rainbow of the sky at sunset – every color is present, particularly deep oranges and pinks – redeems it.

Other photographs are just as colorful, but completely original in their forms. These pieces take the viewer completely by surprise. For instance, in “Pescadero,” birds fly at sunset, but the birds appear to be dark splashes on a canvas of red-blue streaks. “Winter Moon” shows the familiar image of the desolate road at night, but encompassed by blinding white light from the sky. “Fountain” is a column of a cloud against the sky’s deep blue.

More solid forms appear in a few of Dickerman’s photographs. “Fiery Palms” is a blurred, surreal image of burning palm trees. The bright orange-red against the green background is a contrast that will catch your eye and keep it there. “Yosemite,” a picture from Half Dome at Yosemite National Park, casts pine trees in a greenish-blue tint, with the moonlight similar to broad sunlight in its illumination.

If Dickerman’s photographs are movies, they are certainly of the silent variety. The immensity of nature that he captures in these images leaves one with a feeling of deep quiet, the kind of awe that comes from realizing for a moment how vast the world is, and how infinitesimal we are in relation to it.

“Into the West” is an exhibit that displays great craftsmanship in portraying awesome, intimate relationship between humanity and our environment.

Photos of artwork by:

BRANDON WALOFF / Assistant Photo Editor