Paulette Tavormina

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Paulette Tavormina, 2013

Paulette Tavormina (born 1949 in Rockville Centre, New York) is an American fine-art photographer who lives and works in New York City. Tavormina is best known for her series, Natura Morta, which features photographic imagery inspired by 17th century Dutch, Spanish and Italian Old Master still life painters.[1][2][3][4]

Career[]

Lemons and Pomegranates, After J.V.H, 2010, by Paulette Tavormina
Peaches and Morning Glories, after G.G., 2010, by Paulette Tavormina

Tavormina's interest in photography grew out of a 1980s request by a New York public relations firm to photograph a visiting celebrity.[5] She then took an introductory class at the International Center of Photography in New York. After moving to Santa Fe, New Mexico, Tavormina took a class in black and white photography and darkroom technique, and became a commercial photographer, specializing in historical Indian pottery and Navajo jewelry. She also worked as a food stylist, collaborating on six cookbooks, including The Coyote Café Cookbook and The Red Sage Cookbook. She adapted her food styling experience to become a prop and food specialist for Hollywood films including The Astronaut's Wife,[6] where part of her work involved creating elaborate food scenes.[5] While in Santa Fe, Tavormina became fascinated by the work of Sarah McCarty,[7] a Santa Fe-based still life painter and was introduced to the works of 17th century Old Master still-life painters Giovanna Garzoni and Maria Sibylla Merian.

Early in her career, Tavormina spent six years working at Sotheby's auction house in New York, surrounded by fine art. Returning to New York in the mid-2000s, after a period learning Italian and finding her ancestral roots in Sicily, Tavormina joined Sotheby's again, photographing works of art for their auction catalogues. Tavormina began experimenting and creating photographic images reminiscent of the still life art of Dutch, Italian and Spanish painters of the 17th century, including Francesco de Zurbarán, Giovanna Garzoni, Maria Sibylla Merian, and Willem Claesz Heda. By 2009, Tavormina had developed the lighting and composition style that forms the backbone of her Natura Morta series, and the work was shown publicly for the first time in 2009 at Sotheby's. Her first gallery show was the Still Seen group exhibition[8] at Robert Klein Gallery in Boston in the fall of 2009. Tavormina's work has since been part of a number of solo and group exhibitions. In addition to her fine-art photography, Tavormina photographs images for cookbooks such as The 1802 Beekman Heirloom Cookbook[9] and The 1802 Beekman Heirloom Dessert Cookbook and other commercial publications such as Sotheby's at Auction,[10] Martha Stewart Weddings,[11] The New York Times,[12] and National Geographic magazine.[13]

Monograph[]

A monograph entitled Paulette Tavormina: Seizing Beauty was published in 2016 by The Monacelli Press.[14] This 160-page volume incorporates plates of Tavormina's major works from the period 2008 to 2015 as well as essays by the art and photography scholars Silvia Malaguzzi, Mark Alice Durant and Anke Van Wagenberg-Ter Hoeven.[15]

Awards and grants[]

In August 2016, Tavormina was selected by the Pollock-Krasner Foundation as a 2016 recipient of a Pollock-Krasner grant.

In November 2010, Tavormina was awarded[16][17] the Grand Prix of the Festival International de la Photographie Culinaire, a juried photography competition held annually in Paris, France.

Solo museum exhibitions[]

Solo gallery exhibitions[]

  • A Concert of Birds, Robert Mann Gallery, New York, NY, 2018[20]
  • Seizing Beauty, Colnaghi, Madrid, Spain, 2018[21]
  • Seizing Beauty, Colnaghi, London, England, 2017 [22]
  • Paulette Tavormina, Beetles + Huxley Gallery, London, England, 2015 [23][24][25]
  • Paulette Tavormina: Bogedón, Robert Mann Gallery, New York, 2015 [26]
  • Bogedón Series by Paulette Tavormina, March SF, San Francisco, 2014 [27]
  • Black & Bloom, A solo exhibition in two parts, Robert Klein Gallery, Boston MA, 2014 [28][29]
  • Photographs, March SF, San Francisco, 2013 [2][3]
  • Natura Morta, Robert Mann Gallery, New York, 2013 [30][31]
  • Natura Morta, Polka Gallery, Paris, 2012 [32]
  • Natura Morta, Robert Klein Gallery, Boston, 2010 [33]

Selected group exhibitions[]

  • Undying Traditions: Momento Mori, Muskegon Museum of Art, Muskegon, MI, 2020.[34]
  • The Garzoni Challenge, Uffizi Galleries, Florence, Italy, 2020.[35]
  • Seizing Beauty, Colnaghi Gallery, New York, NY, 2020.[36]
  • Garden Party, Catherine Couturier Gallery, Houston, TX, 2019.[37]
  • Sleep with the Fishes, Robert Mann Gallery, New York, NY, 2019.[38]
  • Birds of a Feather, Robert Mann Gallery, New York, NY, 2017.[39]
  • Still Life – The Pleasure of Stopping Time, Holden Luntz Gallery, Palm Beach, Florida, 2016.[40]
  • Month of Photography Denver: Playing with Beauty curated by Mark Sink, RedLine, Denver, Colorado, 2015 [41][42]
  • Summer Photography Show, Stephanie Hoppen Gallery, London, England, 2014 [43]
  • Fragile, Chris Beetles Fine Photographs, London, England, 2013 [44][45]
  • An Artist's Delight: Revealing the Fantasies of Still Life, Alimentarium Museum, Vevey, Switzerland, 2014 [46][47]
  • The Photographers 2011, Chris Beetles Fine Photographs, London, United Kingdom, 2011 [48]
  • Natura Morta, Polka Gallery, Paris, 2011 [32]
  • Natura Morta, Pobeda Galley, Moscow, Russia, 2011[49]
  • Still Life Revisited, Everson Museum of Art, Syracuse, New York, 2011 [50]
  • Food for Thought, Robert Mann Gallery, New York, New York, 2011 [51]
  • Naturae Mortae: Master Photographers of the 20th Century, Photographica Fine Art, Lugano, Switzerland, 2010 [52]
  • Through a Painter's Lens, Holden Luntz Gallery, Palm Beach Florida, 2009 [53]
  • Still Seen, Robert Klein Gallery, Boston, MA, 2009,[8]

References[]

  1. ^ The Boston Globe, "The Magic of Objects", November 24, 2010
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b Bon Appétit, "Old Master, New Technology: The Still Lifes of Paulette Tavormina" Archived 2013-03-22 at the Wayback Machine, March 18, 2013
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b The Morning News, "Natura Morta Paulette Tavormina", March 4, 2013
  4. ^ Photo Technique Magazine, "Natura Morta" Archived 2013-03-07 at the Wayback Machine, July/August 2012 issue
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b Digital Photo Russia, (in Russian), February 2012
  6. ^ IMDb, Crew
  7. ^ Sarah McCarty, "Gallery Website"
  8. ^ Jump up to: a b Robert Klein Gallery Announcement Archived 2014-12-16 at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ Publisher's Weekly "The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Cookbook"
  10. ^ Sotheby's at Auction, January 2013 issue
  11. ^ Martha Stewart Weddings: Special Travel Issue, October 2012,
  12. ^ The New York Times "Against the Grain", April 23, 2014
  13. ^ National Geographic magazine, "A Moveable Feast", July 2014 issue
  14. ^ Paulette Tavormina: Seizing Beauty published by The Monacelli Press, 2016, ISBN 9781580934565
  15. ^ The New York Times '"Vivid Images That Aren't Old Masters - but Look Just Like Them, April 20, 2016
  16. ^ L'Express, Paris, "Le meilleur de la photo culinare 2010" (in French), November 26, 2010
  17. ^ Le Républicain Lorraine, "Beau et bon à la fois" (in French), November 28, 2010
  18. ^ Seizing Beauty: Photographs by Paulette Tavormina Snite Museum of Art Archived 2016-09-19 at the Wayback Machine, 2016
  19. ^ Paulette Tavormina: Seizing Beauty Academy Art Museum Archived 2016-09-19 at the Wayback Machine
  20. ^ "SEIZING BEAUTY 2018". Colnaghi. Colnaghi. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  21. ^ "Seizing Beauty - Colnaghi". seizingbeauty.colnaghi.com. Retrieved 2017-07-06.
  22. ^ Wall Street International "Paulette Tavormina: Life, Death and the Old Masters" June 2015
  23. ^ Artdependence Interview by Anna Savitskaya, June 15, 2015
  24. ^ International Business Times "Paulette Tavormina's Sumptuous Photos", by David Sim, May 14, 2015
  25. ^ Robert Mann Gallery Announcement
  26. ^ March SF Announcement Archived 2015-04-06 at the Wayback Machine
  27. ^ Robert Klein Gallery Announcement
  28. ^ ARTnews, Review by Joanne Silver, May 2014 issue
  29. ^ The New Yorker, "Paulette Tavormina", March 1, 2013
  30. ^ The New York Times, "A Feast for Eyes", January 16, 2013
  31. ^ Jump up to: a b Photography Now "Solo Shows"
  32. ^ Robert Klein Gallery Press Release. November 12, 2010
  33. ^ "Undying Traditions: Memento Mori". Muskegon Museum of Art. Muskegon Museum of Art. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  34. ^ "What is The Garzoni Challenge?". Advancing Women Artists. The Medici Archive Project. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  35. ^ "Still Life -- The Pleasure of Stopping Time" (PDF). Holden Luntz. November 12, 2016. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
  36. ^ Month of Photography Denver Festival Website
  37. ^ L'Oeil de la Photographie The Eye of Photography, March 2015
  38. ^ Stephanie Hoppen Gallery Web Site Archived 2015-03-21 at the Wayback Machine
  39. ^ Chris Beetles Fine Photographs Gallery Web Site[permanent dead link]
  40. ^ The Evening Standard Exhibition Review
  41. ^ Alimentarium Museum Web Site
  42. ^ Alimentarium Museum Catalogue Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine
  43. ^ Chris Beetles Fine Photographs Web Site
  44. ^ Photography Now Web Site
  45. ^ Everson Museum of Art Web Site Archived 2013-07-04 at archive.today
  46. ^ The New York Times, "An Exhibit Focuses on Food Loved by the Camera", March 29, 2011
  47. ^ Photographica Fine Art Web Site
  48. ^ Holden Luntz Gallery Web Site

External links[]

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