Moca Georgia Atlanta USA 2005

As part of MOCA GA’s current exhibition, “Accelerating Sequence: Artists Observe Time and Aging,” exhibiting artist Lloyd Godman from New Zealand ran a free photogram workshop at the Midtown gallery space on Wednesday.

Photograms are camera-less photographs that are created by laying objects on photographic paper and exposing them to light, forming a unique negative image that resembles an X-ray once developed. Used by Fox Talbot at the inception of the medium around 1838, then reinvented in 1919 by Man Ray and the surrealists as well as Maholy Nagy and the Bauhaus, the photogram recently has undergone a contemporary revival.

“Where possible, I love to do these workshops alongside my exhibitions; they open people up to how accessible photography can be. Kids from as young as 4 to older kids of 90 years just love the hands-on aspect of the workshop, where they can create their own images and process them in the gallery without the complexity of cameras, film, etc. It’s fantastic and energizes everyone who takes part,” Godman said.

After a brief talk about the history of the technique, participants were shown how to make their own 8-by-10 images. They then worked with Godman to produce a large work encompassing several life-size figures and a scattering of autumn leaves.

The content of the workshop also was designed to interface with the theme of the exhibition. Curated by Dan Talley, “Accelerating Sequence” invited artists to explore the concepts of time and aging.

Godman’s work in the exhibition allows visitors to photograph themselves through a row of plants growing in the gallery. The images are stored in a database and randomly become part of a time-lapse sequence in which the plants appear to grow faster and faster as the exhibition progresses.

The workshop was sponsored by MOCA GA and Showcase School of Photography.