ALINE SMITHSON: Photographing Family

Copyright (c) Aline Smithson

Copyright (c) Aline Smithson

To create the series Arrangement in Green and Black: Portrait of the Photographer's Mother, Aline Smithson took photographs of her 85-year-old mother combining traditional photography techniques with hand painted color. The inspiration for the series began when she found a small print of Whistler's painting Arrangement in Grey and Black: Portrait of the Painter's Mother, at a neighborhood garage sale. The same weekend she found a leopard coat and hat, a 1950s cat painting, and what looked like the exact chair from the Whistler painting. "That started me thinking about the idea of portraiture, the strong compositional relationships going on within Whistler's painting, and the evocative nature of unassuming details," says Smithson. 

ALINE SMITHSON

The Griffin Museum of Photography  
April 7 - May 16, 2010

Arrangement In Green And Black
 PORTRAIT OF THE PHOTOGRAPHER'S MOTHER
The Atelier Gallery, 395 Main Street, Stoneham, MA