Man and Machine

Photographers Ricardo Barros and Phil McAuliffe and sculptor G. Frederick Morante pay homage to the human side of technology in an exhibit at Ellarslie.

By: Susan Van Dongen

"image"
Image from the George Green Machine Shop Portfolio by Ricardo Barros were originally made for the Lambertville Historical Society.

   The three artists in the new show at the Trenton City Museum at Ellarslie have three distinctive styles, but all with a nod to technology.
   Work by photographers Ricardo Barros and Phil McAuliffe, along with sculptor G. Frederick Morante, will be on view in a special show at Ellarslie. The exhibit, which runs Sept. 20 to Nov. 9, kicks off the museum’s 25th season and also is one of 25 events celebrating the silver anniversary of TimeOFF magazine. There will be an opening reception Sept. 27, and Mr. Barros and Mr. McAuliffe will give a talk Oct. 3.
   The technical connection comes from the photographers’ subject matter. Among many other subjects, both have made pictures of great machines and man-made creations. As a photojournalist, Mr. McAuliffe has covered space-shuttle launches many times, whereas Mr. Barros’ portfolio features moody, large-format black-and-white portraits of a long-gone machine shop in Lambertville. One is space age, speed-of-light technology, whereas the other was considered state-of-the-art at the dawn of the 20th century.

"image"
Another image from the George Green Machine Shop Portfolio by Ricardo Barros.

   Mr. Morante’s recent sculptural works also marry man and machine, such as his "Motorcycle Mama." A resident of Mercerville, he’s taught at the Johnson Atelier since 1977 and began his career joining elements of industrial products — such as TV tubes and plastic airplane models — with his witty hand-sculpted figures.
   For Mr. Barros, who has been the principal photographer at Grounds for Sculpture and the Johnson Atelier for more than a decade, "man, metal and machine" figures frequently in his work.
   "The beauty in sculpture has something in common with other media in artwork — the forms, shadows and volumes are present in nudes, landscapes, portraits and architecture," Mr. Barros says. "But these underlying forms and tonalities, these visual characteristics that are in sculpture are very definitely in machines as well. As a photographer, that’s what I’m about — finding and revealing those forms and shapes through light and shadow."

"image"
The show at Ellarslie includes some of Phil McAuliffe’s aerospace photography such as "Endeavor Launch," March 2001.

   The George Green Machine Shop Portfolio came together when Mr. Barros was asked to document the former facility on York Street in Lambertville for the town’s historical society. The original photographs were made with a traditional medium-format view camera, which struck Mr. Barros as ironic since he was shooting vintage technology with vintage technology.
   "Long exposures were required because the (shop) was so dark," he says. "For some photographs, the shutter was left open for hours. I went out for lunch and came back."

"image"
Phil McAuliffe’s aerospace photograph, "Apollo Spacesuit".

   The poor lighting conditions made the negatives very challenging to print, yet more than 20 years later Mr. Barros was able to employ digital technology to bring out visual information that was virtually invisible to conventional silver prints.
   "Now more detail from these vintage negatives is accessible, both in the shadows and in the highlights," Mr. Barros says. "They are reminiscent of the hand-coated, platinum prints prevalent at the turn on the last century — just about when George Green opened his shop."
   Perhaps there could be no greater contrast between George Green’s rumbling "Otto Engine" than the technology used to explore outer space.
   The NASA space shuttle and its family of orbiters are one of Mr. McAuliffe’s favorite things to photograph. In fact, shooting the launches put the hook in him to leave a career in music behind and pursue photojournalism instead.
   Mr. McAuliffe was living in Florida, playing in a band full time as a bassist and making pictures just as a hobby. A lifelong interest in space travel, history and photography motivated him to talk his way into a weighty freelance assignment for the Pompano Ledger — making pictures of the space-shuttle launches. He admits he was "in over his head," but enjoying every second.

"image"
"Big Brother, New York" 1994 by Phil McAuliffe.

   "I was with a crowd that was the best in the world," Mr. McAuliffe says. "I was standing next to guys from ‘National Geographic,’ for example. Some photojournalists and photographers put themselves up on a pedestal, but I found that the best ones are also really nice guys willing to share knowledge and information with you. It was an awakening — I found something that I really wanted to do, something that spoke to me."
   Mr. McAuliffe, who has worked for The Princeton Packet since 1996, even managed to befriend the astronauts and their families. Shortly before his wedding ceremony, he convinced astronaut Linda Voss to carry his wedding rings into space.
   "There might be about 75 people shooting (shuttle) launches on a regular basis," Mr. McAuliffe says. "It’s an awesome experience to see and I kind of got addicted to it. It’s almost like you’re watching a form of evolution. You’re watching man go from Earth to space, which is like man going from water onto the land. It’s something that’s bigger than all of us."
   The Ellarslie show will include some of Mr. McAuliffe’s aerospace photography, as well as his documentary work shot while helping to reunite a family split by the war in Kosovo — another amazing story the Trenton native has to tell. He also spent 14 months photographing the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center, which resulted in a photo and video documentary aired on WZBN-TV in Trenton.
   On the lighter side, Mr. McAuliffe will be showing quite a few portraits of famous jazz, rock and blues artists — some taken 25 years ago, when he was reviewing and photographing concerts for the former Mercer Messenger. There’s an image of B.B. King (a TimeOFF cover), as well as shots of Les Paul, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney and The Edge, guitarist for U2.
   "A lot of the assignments were things I did as a freelancer, but some of them weren’t assigned at all," Mr. McAuliffe says. "It was mostly in the early ’90s when I was reviewing and shooting concerts and had more access (to famous musicians). Things have tightened up a lot now.
   "But my priority has never been, ‘Who will publish this work?’" he says. "My philosophy is to get in there and capture the event while it’s happening and then worry about the images later."
Works by Ricardo Barros, Phil McAuliffe and G. Frederick Morante are on view at the Trenton City Museum at Ellarslie, Cadwalader Park, Trenton, Sept. 20-Nov. 9. Reception: Sept. 27, 7-9 p.m. Mr. Barros and Mr. McAuliffe will give a photography lecture Oct. 3, 6:30 p.m. Gallery hours: Tues.-Sat. 11 a.m.-3 p.m., Sun. 1-4 p.m. For information, call (609) 989-3632. On the Web: www.ellarslie.org. Mr. Barros on the Web: www.ricardobarros.com