Rocky Mountain School of Photography Gallery is excited to announce the upcoming exhibit, Big Air, with work by previous RMSP students, Richard Cornelius and Rita Pignato. This is the second annual exhibition showcasing the work of outstanding students that have attended RMSP in some capacity.

Cornelius and Pignato both completed RMSP’s Career Training program, a 5-month intensive photography and professional studies course based in Missoula, Montana, in October 2009. From the mountains of Telluride, Colorado and the streets of Brooklyn, New York, the work that developed and evolved from their time in Montana clearly reveals the power of place and its ability to draw out what profoundly moves us. While both artists engage a sense of adventure and The West, Big Air presents a stimulating dialogue through the juxtaposition of aspects of: surreal/real, motion/stillness, play/reflection, people/space. Together, their work gives us the play and the playground, the company and the solitude, and an inspiring heap of potential, possibility and passion.

Richard Cornelius’s large, sculptural pieces capture people, seemingly superheroes, literally catching big air. The large, colorful, comic-book-like characters are doing what they love – living big, playing big and going hard. Whether it’s a snowboarder catching air off the slopes, a skateboarder making heights off the bowl rim, a rodeo bronco rider getting wildly bucked, or a bicycle acrobat tossing sky-high 360s – these folks are rockin’! Displayed in a way that feels larger-than-life, the photographs are cut and compiled in a grid of toy building blocks. The alphabet blocks are in 19 languages including Arabic, Chinese, Hebrew, Russian, Braille and Egyptian hieroglyphics! Cornelius’s work invites viewers/participants into a world of play, addressing its universal nature and passion-filled abilities.

Rita Pignato’s photographs of the Western sky are simply and honestly straightforward, while at the same time romantic and timeless. Literal documentation of the big air/big sky, the vibrant views of an expansive skyscape beg of deep breathing and quiet mind. The ever-changing clouds and light seem to express infinite moods, thoughts and reflections and remind us of their fleeting nature and infinite possibility. With the mass of the square-format filled with sky, the sliver of land seems to offer grounding and a reference point – putting in perspective the bigness of the earth and of this life and humbling our place in it.

RMSP Gallery is dedicated to sharing the quality of work coming out of the school, and celebrating the growth and promotion of artists doing distinguishable photographic projects.

Please join us for an opening reception with the artists on Friday, June 4th from 5 to 8pm.