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Vol. LXI, No. 39
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Wednesday, September 26, 2007
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Vol. LXI, No. 39
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Wednesday, September 26, 2007
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Pics and Stones,” an exhibition of fine art photography by Jeff Goodwin and stone sculpture by Jill Turndorf, opens this Friday, September 28, in a store space turned gallery donated by the management of Palmer Square.
The show will run through Sunday, October 7, at 63 Palmer Square West.
Two-thirds of the proceeds from the sale of the artwork will go to HomeFront, which provides emergency shelter and affordable housing for families in Mercer County, along with tutoring and enrichment programs for children; and life skills training for adults. Both artists have long connections with the local non-profit.
Sculptor Jill Turndorf got involved some 18 years ago, with the group that formed HomeFront, distributing diapers and food to homeless families living in motels along Route 1.
Photographer Jeff Goodwin has been helping the agency’s children with their homework for the last four years. “I started photographing the kids at a Christmas party and giving them copies of the pictures,” he recalled. “I was stunned by the impact the photographs had, allowing these homeless kids to see themselves as beautiful through someone else’s eyes. That’s a hard thing to appreciate when you are homeless.”
Some of Mr. Goodwin’s photographs of children are included in the exhibition but they are not for sale. “We are not looking to exploit the children, we’re looking to help them,” he said.
“Jeff’s pictures capture the essence of a moment,” said Ms. Mercer. “He has ‘eyes that see’ and his photography captures an unflinching view of humanity.”
In the main, Mr. Goodwin, who also runs his own computer consulting company, InSys Technology LLC, photographs regular people doing regular things. His particular interest, however, is timed shots and night photography, shot in the wee hours in Trenton and Philadelphia (he carries about 50 pounds of equipment with him). While shooting “The Glass Wall,” early one morning in Philadelphia, he tripped over a homeless man sleeping close to the building’s warmth.
The integrity of the scene is so important — he doesn’t manipulate a scene or a photographic image by computer enhancement — that the Yardley, Pa. resident spends time searching for the unusual perspective with his Nikon D2X single lens reflex digital camera.
“Night Train” is a case in point. Taken through the window of a moving train at 4:30 a.m. during a rainstorm in Vietnam, the photograph’s Impressionist-style brushstrokes are the result of raindrops being pulled by the motion of the train.
Many of Mr. Goodwin’s photographs were taken during trips abroad. “Monks at Angkor Wat,” which was selected from over 30,000 entries to be published in Smithsonian Magazine and exhibited in the Smithsonian Institute, shows two orange-clad Buddhist monks enjoying a conversation with one another while seated beneath the columns of the 12th-century building. Bullet holes from the massacre of the temple’s monks by the Khmer Rouge are clearly visible.
The prize-winning photographer has sold to private collectors and participated in international exhibitions as well as in local galleries. His “Close Encounter” is in the permanent collection of the Trenton City Museum. Framed photographs in the HomeFront show will sell for $330, unframed for $230.
As Ms. Turndorf tells it, the collaboration came about after she approached HomeFront’s Connie Mercer. “I have an idea,” she told the executive director. Without hesitation, Ms. Mercer’s response was an enthusiastic. “Yes, we’ll do it.” Ms. Mercer further suggested that Ms. Turndorf mount the exhibition of her sculpture together with photographs by fellow HomeFront volunteer Jeff Goodwin.
While Mr. Goodwin has been part of other people’s shows, this is the first major exhibition of his work. It’s also a first for Ms. Turndorf. “This represents six years of work,” said Ms. Turndorf, an avid craftswoman (she also paints portraits and pottery, makes quilts and rugs, and decorates eggs, Ukrainian-style) who discovered her medium at a Princeton Adult School class taught by Pietro Smith. Since then, the Skillman resident has experimented with a variety of stone and alabaster.
“I love the human form and mother and child pieces and like to show the natural along with the polished stone,” said Ms. Turndorf, who said that she particularly enjoys the hand-polishing process. “Many sculptors farm out this part of the process because it’s time-consuming but I enjoy it as part of the discovery of the piece; the stone comes to life revealing its character.” The hands-on-stone process contrasts with the earlier stages of sculpting, for which Ms. Turndorf uses pneumatic hammers and chisels, a power circular saw and various power grinders and hand tools.
Her material comes from local sources and from as far away as Colorado, Italy, and China. The HomeFront show features 31 alabaster, soapstone, and limestone pieces. Prices range from $220 to $6,000. “Adam” is a flesh-toned masculine torso in pink alabaster; “The Invitation” is an art deco-style figure in Indiana limestone of a woman disrobing; “Aphrodite,” in raspberry alabaster, is a curvaceous feminine torso; “Venus Nubia,” displays a woman’s torso neatly harmonizing with the soapstone’s contours and colors.
“Jill’s sculptures beg to be caressed,” said Ms. Mercer. “It’s astounding how she can make stone seem so warm and inviting.”
A graduate of Douglass College, Rutgers University, with a BS and certification in preschool education, Ms. Turndorf expressed confidence in HomeFront’s ability to benefit the homeless from the sale. “I know that a high percentage of every dollar that is given to HomeFront is used on programs. They don’t spend a lot on administration. They use volunteers extensively and that’s the strength of HomeFront. I know this, because I’ve volunteered with them and I know the figures. What they do helps all of society. The problem of poverty and homelessness in Mercer County is horrible and most people don’t see it. I’ve worked with families in Princeton who are homeless. The feeling you get from helping one family move out of poverty and move toward self-sufficiency is wonderful.”
Jeff Goodwin is similarly inspired. “People tend not to realize that the majority of homeless are families with children. They are working full-time and homeless because they can’t afford housing or because of a family crisis.”
“HomeFront understands the transformational power of art and creativity,” said Ms. Mercer. The agency includes art sessions for homeless parents among its programs. “Once considered “a frill” by some, this program offers a chance to explore creativity and it has transformed the lives of some of our homeless clients.”
For more on the artists’s work visit: http://JillTurndorf.googlepages.com and jeffgoodwin.com.
For more information about HomeFront, call (609) 989-9417, or visit: www.homefrontnj.org.
The show will begin with a free public reception on Friday, September 28, from 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. It will be open Monday through Thursday., from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free.