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Depths of winter: 'Frozen in Time' brings images of joy, despair to Monroe Gallery
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Winter brings both beauty and brutality.
Open at Santa Fe鈥檚 Monroe Gallery of Photography, 鈥淔rozen in Time鈥� brings images of both joy and despair by some of the most renowned American photojournalists. The photographs cover the 2016 protests during the Standing Rock pipeline construction, a skating waiter at St. Moritz, Switzerland, in the early 1900s, and images of the grim winter conditions during World War II.
Several of the photojournalists worked for Life magazine.
Depths of winter: 'Frozen in Time' brings images of both joy, despair to Monroe Gallery
鈥淚t always makes for a beautiful, serene, contemplative experience,鈥� said Michelle Monroe, gallery co-owner, of the frosty season. 鈥淲e know it鈥檚 cold, we know it鈥檚 quiet, we know there is a veil of light.鈥�
Alfred Eisenstaedt鈥檚 鈥淚ce Skating Waiter鈥� encapsulates the grace of skating while balancing a tray of glasses and liquor.
鈥淗e had a very rudimentary camera with glass plates,鈥� Monroe said. 鈥淗e said the whole thing was a technical challenge.鈥�
The photographer focused on the chair until the waiter swanned by.
Tony Vaccaro鈥檚 photograph of soldiers partially buried in snow during the 88-day Battle of H眉rtgen Forest captures the longest fight on German ground of World War II. An estimated 24,000 were killed, wounded or captured.
鈥淭here was no one more uncomfortable than the other,鈥� Monroe said. 鈥淵ou couldn鈥檛 even find any comfort being together. (Vaccaro) said there was a lot of dark humor.鈥�
In 2023, Navajo photographer Eugene Tapahe took 鈥淎ncestral Strength鈥� in Wyoming鈥檚 Grand Teton National Park.
Tapahe was studying at Utah鈥檚 Brigham Young University when the pandemic hit. He decided to take four Native jingle dancers (two of whom were his daughters) across the country.
鈥淭he jingle dress has always been used for healing,鈥� Monroe said. 鈥淪ince the schools were closed, perhaps he could heal the country. They went all over performing. It had a tremendous effect on people.鈥�
Those stops included Mount Rushmore, Yosemite and New York鈥檚 Central Park.
Ryan Vizzions photographed the protests over the Standing Rock pipeline in 2017, including a portrait of a medicine man.
鈥淗e was a spiritual counselor and guide for everything there to keep people in focus,鈥� Monroe said.
Life magazine photographer Ida Wyman created a graceful shot of a wrought iron railing in the New York snow in 1945.
鈥�(For) a lot of the older photographers, in order to be put on the front page, it was to get out there and get a shot of this latest snowstorm,鈥� Monroe said. 鈥淪he was part of the Photo League (cooperative.) They were shut down by the Red Scare movement for being subversive.鈥�
The photographs also include images of the 1939 Russo-Finnish War, harsh winter conditions in the northern Soviet Union taken during its collapse in the 1990s and several ice skating scenes, including Truman Capote at New York鈥檚 famed Rockefeller Plaza in 1959, as well as tranquil snow scenes of the American West.
Monroe Gallery specializes in photojournalism, showcasing works by 31 photographers. It was the recipient of the 2010 Alfred Eisenstaedt Award for Excellence in Photojournalism.
