Mega Churches by Joe Johnson
on view January 8 - February 21, 2010
Also on view: Eleven Mega Churches by Travis Shaffer
OPENING RECEPTION Friday, January 8. 7:00 - 10:00 p.m.
Artist Talk at 7:15 p.m. Free Concert by The Parade Schedule and Peter Bradley Adams at 8:00 p.m.
ARTIST STATEMENT BY JOE JOHNSON
Mega Churches have inspired thousands of Christian worshippers to gather within vast post-modern architectural spaces across the nation. Megalithic in size, these corporate structures, converted Hilton hotels, and restored theaters are transformed into halls of prayer each Sunday through performative rituals and multimedia spectacles. Most definitions require that a minimum of 2000 worshippers must attend the weekend service for the building to attain the “Mega Church” status.
Specifically I am photographing the empty interior architecture and sanctuary spaces where worship is performed. I use the descriptive power of photography to construct a personal vocabulary with which I can communicate what interests me about a subject. I tend to gravitate to subjects that have some inherent tension and mystery. With the Mega Church project, an interesting point of tension lies in a secular treatment of contemporary religious practice within Mega Churches.
This body of work attempts to reveal the mechanics of creating faith by capturing the wires, computers, light bulbs, and cords that are used to construct mysteries on stage for the faithful. The rawness of the abandoned mega-space and the eerie familiarity of its commercial fixtures question the intention and business of faith in the 21st century.
ABOUT JOE JOHNSON
Joe Johnson received his BFA from the San Francisco Art Institute and an MFA from the Massachusetts College of Art. His work has been featured at the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park, the Griffin Museum of Photography, and the Beach Museum of Art. Johnson has participated in exhibitions at Bonni Benrubi Gallery in New York, Gallery Kayafas, Boston, Flat File Gallery, Chicago, Photographic Center North West, Seattle, WA, Redux Contemporary Art Center in Charleston SC, and many others. His work has been reviewed in articles by the New York Times and the Boston Globe. Joe’s work is included in numerous public, private, and corporate collections. In 2008 he received an Individual Creativity grant from the Ohio Arts Council and is a runner up for the Aperture Portfolio Prize. In 2010, Joe will have solo shows in the 930 Gallery in Louisville KY and Pictura Gallery in Bloomington IL. Currently Joe Johnson is an Assistant Professor of Photography at the University of Missouri.
Also on view: Eleven Mega Churches by Travis Shaffer
