at last! we have a gallery opening in atlanta! we're coming off the heels of an amazing opening in new york city this month (it was even written up by The New Yorker) and amazing meetings with rolling stone, harper's, the new yorker, time, fortune, etc, so we're thrilled to keep this momentum going. if you're in georgia, we would absolutely love to see you at our opening at the jennifer schwartz gallery in buckhead, atlanta this saturday, january 29, 2011. you can see two personal individual projects of ours, as well as the start of our polaroid essay duet, that all relate to everyone's need for a feeling of escape--especially in this depressed economic climate and in the middle of a seemingly neverending war.

Details: Opening Reception: Saturday, January 29th 7pm-10pm Artist Talk: Thursday, February 3rd 7pm Exhibition Dates: January 29 – February 26 Location: Jennifer Schwartz Gallery – TULA Art Center, Suite K2, 75 Bennett Street NW, Atlanta, GA 30309 Press Inquiry Contact: press@luceoimages.com (212)249-9500 Curation and Statement by LUCEO’s Matt Eich: Escapism noun \is-ˈkā-ˌpi-zəm\: habitual diversion of the mind to purely imaginative activity or entertainment as an escape from reality or routine. In David Walter Banks and Kendrick Brinson’s debut solo exhibition (a duet if you will) these young photographers lead us into seemingly unlikely worlds. Through their images, the viewer is invited to escape into different places and access a subtle variety of emotions. Banks’ images deal with notions of reality while Brinson makes photographs that manage to be quirky but heartfelt without poking fun at the people she depicts. Their visual approaches, while different, both manage to be tongue-in-cheek without coming off as judgmental. Stylistically unified by their vibrant use of color it is easy to see their influence on one another. In a selection of Polaroids from their ongoing essay “The Coast”, Banks and Brinson leave mementoes from their own personal escapes, from both of the hectic daily schedules of being a working photographer and also the normal tools of their trade, the DSLR. Instead they have adopted the nearly extinct Polaroid to illustrate the ephemeral and fleeting nature of these getaways. This set of images pulls back the veil on the artists own relationship, showing how intertwined they really are, beyond the projects they undertake. Banks and Brinson are each other’s muse. Through their exploration of escapism in theme parks and attractions, escapism as a lifestyle for the elderly or their own personal escapism to remember the simple joy of making pictures, these images direct our thoughts to escape in our society. As Americans, maybe as humans, many of us are wired with the desire to break from reality. Banks and Brinson confront this head-on through the lives of others and are still able to bare their own vulnerabilities. Ultimately, what are we escaping from but the fleeting nature of life, the certainness of death? As Sun City resident Tom Woods said to Brinson, “Enjoy your youth, I’ll tell ya, you never know how much you have left.”

sure, lots of details at weddings make for beautiful decor for your guests to admire, but we were happily reminded of the most important details at a wedding on jill and kevin's wedding day: love and family. we were only with jill and kevin for two hours--they found us a beautiful field and barn to photograph them at and then we got to take more photos with their daughter andie. (by the way, jill's description of andie being photographed completely cracked us up. she warned us that photographing andie could lead "to her acting like a wild monkey on crack, or she could withdraw totally and be weird," which made david laugh hysterically because that summed up my personality pretty well. as you can see below, andie was neither and made a lovely model. but c'mon, who doesn't love a cracked-out monkey?) we then photographed their ceremony, which was short and sweet and had only close family as witnesses. it had all the makings of a perfect wedding, without the fuss. it was such a lovely wedding to end our wedding whirlwind of 2010. thanks for sharing a beautiful afternoon with us, you three!

hello lovely friends, as you know, wedding photography is just a piece of our photographic lives. we also dedicate ourselves to editorial work (for TIME, NY Times, AARP, etc), as well as in-depth long-term project work. well! the cooperative that we founded (LUCEO) has an upcoming show in NYC january 19 at 25CPW at 7pm. along with the show, we're selling a limited edition signed exhibition catalogue that is absolutely beautiful. it features both of our most recent personal projects, as well as the work of the other talented LUCEO photographers. it will be signed by everyone in the group if you pre-order it. so, yea, this is a shameless plug but also a great opportunity to get your paws on an amazing collector's item. seriously. anyways, we'd love to see you at the opening on january 19th! we also have a show at the Jennifer Schwartz Gallery in atlanta january 29th.

so, we hope to see you in nyc or atl this month! thanks and happy 2011!