Artist Statement

In the summer of 2015 I visited the historic South Side of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania for the first time in many years. My main objective was to visit the Chi Phi fraternity house at Lehigh University where my father was a fraternity brother and undergraduate some 70 years earlier. Lehigh was a very big part of my Dad's life and consequently it was a familiar presence in our family. The few times I remember going there—once for his 25th class reunion and a couple of other times for Lehigh football games—are firmly etched in my memory. That 2015 visit began an involvement with Bethlehem that is intimately tied to my father's memory. One of my graduate school peers had written that "buildings can be tied to memories and identities in the landscape," a brilliant elucidation brought to life here. The town itself seemed to represent my father. In this way it triggered an extended anamnesis, or reminiscence of him. The feeling was deepened by having visited there as a boy with my father. So I began a photography project with the primary intent of making a photo book for my family, and also exhibiting the work to a larger audience that would primarily include Lehigh Alumni. Those who view the pictures and who know Bethlehem can then see the town and campus from my perspective as inspired by memory. 

In making these pictures I've been looking for whatever traces of my father's memory and identity I can find in the architectural landscape. While the fraternity house and campus were my initial focus, other buildings, structures and places nearby soon became more relevant. Dad studied chemical engineering at Lehigh, so the former Bethlehem Steel plant is a place that has resonated strongly; so have the historic buildings and structures in town that he probably knew. When I first got off the interstate this is what spoke to me. Interestingly, the more I've gone there to photograph the harder it has been to stay immersed in that memory. I attribute that to a natural progression in the work. After 2-plus years the town has become more familiar and so the modern landscape has superseded my initial perceptions. The more recent pictures are as much about Bethlehem itself and are imbued with a sense of place…which has been the conceptual basis for much of my fine art work.

Gallery