Shooting on the streets of Paris—but it could be anywhere to achieve his effects—Gert Wiedmaier produces black-and-white photographs of cityscapes and people who are out and about on their business, and then coats them seamlessly with varnish and wax so that his subjects dissolve into a subtle fog in which they retain their form, yet appear to the viewer at an impenetrable remove. No doubt, Wiedmaier’s takes of iconic monuments, such as the Arc de Triomphe, are evocative by casting the city of lights in a soft enveloping gray, but his depictions of random collections of people who are abstracted from any specific time or place betray his distinctive sensibility (the pathos of distance) and his philosophy (existential isolation). Lost in a void and moving purposively, but without any apparent purpose, Wiedmaier’s pedestrians symbolize the absurd—endless and seemingly self-enclosed activity that will never be consummated in a satisfying meaning. (Michael Weinstein)
Through September 30 at Thomas Masters Gallery, 245 West North.
Repurposing AI: A Review of Stephanie Dinkins at Stamps Gallery While this show is timely for everyone, I consider its setting within a university art gallery and emerging tech hub like the city of Ann Arbor a subversive provocation which Dinkins invites the greater public—including members of the university community—to consider our own positionality to AI and technology.
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