Jumbo images reflect an expansive vision

Colorful 'Street Stories' at Paterson Museum

Friday, April 20, 2007

PHOTOGRAPHY

Street Stories

What: Photographs by Mike Peters

Where: The Paterson Museum, 2 Market St., Paterson

When: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, 12:30-4:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays through May 27

How much: $2 for adults, children free. Includes admission to other museum exhibits. Call (973) 321-1260 or visit www.thepatersonmuseum.com.

BY MITCHELL SEIDEL

STAR-LEDGER STAFF

Mike Peters is a staff photographer at Montclair State University, but in his spare time he shoots for his own enjoyment. He shares his poster-sized creations with us in a show at the Paterson Museum, presenting a display that ranks among its most ambitious in recent memory.

The jumbo images are true to the photographer's vision, reaching from corner-to-corner in the full medium format and displaying rich, vibrant colors. They are a combination of street photography and environmental portraiture, where sometimes the subjects seem aware of the photographer and sometimes not.

A lot should be said for the display in the small gallery off the museum entrance. Usually the museum shows photography along the walls and on free-standing panels, but Peters designed an exhibit that has his images suspended from the ceiling, dispensing with the floor displays. The result is a much more inviting display that creates a greater sense of space. In addition, a soundtrack (ask a museum staffer to turn it on if it isn't playing when you arrive) that features street chatter and street music adds to the experience.

In "Religious Procession," shot in Paterson, a supplicant bows his head during a pause in a march, his neatly slicked-back hair revealing bits of debris no doubt accumulated along the way. He stands in a line of marchers who are slightly out of focus, but the one closest to the camera can be seen glancing out of the corner of his right eye at the photographer and the subject.

Peters displays a keen eye for detail, as is demonstrated in a group of pedestrians peering upward on a Manhattan sidewalk, as if they were extras in a Superman movie looking for the hero. As they look upward, squinting against the sun's glare, you can't help but notice some advertising on a garbage can at the right side of the shot which shows a person wearing sunglasses looking up in almost the same direction as the others.

In a shot of a book vendor in a truck, you immediately look towards the subject's sea captain's hat, and the cigarette dangling from his lips. But what really brings the image together from the right side of a box truck are the dark stained fingers of the bookseller's right hand.

Or there are the two Hasidic men leaning over a waterfront railing in "Two Men with Hats." In this image, the back view of the man on the right side of the shot has his sport jacket flipped up by the breeze, exposing his white shirt. A group of travelers on the Staten Island Ferry almost look like immigrants arriving in the New World as depicted by Peters. On one hand, their casual poses seem like random positions, but upon closer examination they appear to be paired off in groups of two.

It is Peters' keen eye that can take such a random scene and make it appear to be formal.

Mitchell Seidel can be reached at mseidel@starledger.com or (973) 392-1780.

	www.mikepeters.com

Jumbo images reflect an expansive vision Colorful 'Street Stories' at Paterson Museum Friday, April 20, 2007 PHOTOGRAPHY Street Stories What: Photographs by Mike Peters Where: The Paterson Museum, 2 Market St., Paterson When: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, 12:30-4:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays through May 27 How much: $2 for adults, children free. Includes admission to other museum exhibits. Call (973) 321-1260 or visit www.thepatersonmuseum.com. BY MITCHELL SEIDEL STAR-LEDGER STAFF Mike Peters is a staff photographer at Montclair State University, but in his spare time he shoots for his own enjoyment. He shares his poster-sized creations with us in a show at the Paterson Museum, presenting a display that ranks among its most ambitious in recent memory. The jumbo images are true to the photographer's vision, reaching from corner-to-corner in the full medium format and displaying rich, vibrant colors. They are a combination of street photography and environmental portraiture, where sometimes the subjects seem aware of the photographer and sometimes not. A lot should be said for the display in the small gallery off the museum entrance. Usually the museum shows photography along the walls and on free-standing panels, but Peters designed an exhibit that has his images suspended from the ceiling, dispensing with the floor displays. The result is a much more inviting display that creates a greater sense of space. In addition, a soundtrack (ask a museum staffer to turn it on if it isn't playing when you arrive) that features street chatter and street music adds to the experience. In "Religious Procession," shot in Paterson, a supplicant bows his head during a pause in a march, his neatly slicked-back hair revealing bits of debris no doubt accumulated along the way. He stands in a line of marchers who are slightly out of focus, but the one closest to the camera can be seen glancing out of the corner of his right eye at the photographer and the subject. Peters displays a keen eye for detail, as is demonstrated in a group of pedestrians peering upward on a Manhattan sidewalk, as if they were extras in a Superman movie looking for the hero. As they look upward, squinting against the sun's glare, you can't help but notice some advertising on a garbage can at the right side of the shot which shows a person wearing sunglasses looking up in almost the same direction as the others. In a shot of a book vendor in a truck, you immediately look towards the subject's sea captain's hat, and the cigarette dangling from his lips. But what really brings the image together from the right side of a box truck are the dark stained fingers of the bookseller's right hand. Or there are the two Hasidic men leaning over a waterfront railing in "Two Men with Hats." In this image, the back view of the man on the right side of the shot has his sport jacket flipped up by the breeze, exposing his white shirt. A group of travelers on the Staten Island Ferry almost look like immigrants arriving in the New World as depicted by Peters. On one hand, their casual poses seem like random positions, but upon closer examination they appear to be paired off in groups of two. It is Peters' keen eye that can take such a random scene and make it appear to be formal. Mitchell Seidel can be reached at mseidel@starledger.com or (973) 392-1780. © 2007 The Star Ledger © 2007 NJ.com All Rights Reserved.