LouLife [1]

The Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft is pleased to present an exhibition of large-format detail photographs by David Harpe from January 12 – February 16, 2008.  This exhibition is the fourth in the 2007 Kentucky Artist Series, sponsored by Anthem.

This show, Harpe’s first solo exhibition and the largest collection of work he has shown, will feature over 14 photographs, showcasing three distinct bodies of work.

“I have always seen the world as a collection of beautiful details...some cleverly hidden, others hiding in plain sight,” explains Harpe. “The body of work presented in Details, Details, Details is a manifestation of this vision.”

David latest body of work, Water Drops, features flowing streams of water photographed in freefall to create vivid abstract imagery. By exploiting the unique optical properties of water with a variety of techniques, David creates images that are both dynamic and enigmatic. The images are presented as large-scale prints, some up to five feet tall. The large presentation destroys the concept of scale, giving the work an enticingly familiar yet foreign presence.

The second body of work is a selection from, “Steele Bastille,” a series of abstract images of building faces in Louisville, usually taken at sunset or at night. Some of the featured buildings include the Aegon tower and the Humana Building, among others.

The third body of work is a series of detail photographs from the book Stephen Rolfe Powell: Glassmaker. This is the first public viewing of these large-format prints. The Museum is concurrently showing a retrospective exhibition of Stephen Powell’s work in Master Makers: Stephen Rolfe Powell, which will remain on display through February 2, 2008.

Several pieces from the show will be available for sale, with prices between $300 and $2,500.

About David Harpe

David Harpe was born in Louisville, Kentucky in 1965. He attended school at the University of Louisville, where he earned a degree in engineering from Speed Scientific School. He has spent most of his life exploring the world visually using both video equipment and still photography. He worked in television for several years after college, followed by a fifteen-year career as a computer technologist. He toured with Ozzy Osbourne in 1998, photographing the tour and keeping a tour diary for the Ozzfest web site. After the tour, David continued to work in the computer field for another three years, but the rich visual experience on the tour set the stage for a career change. 

In 2002, David left the computer world behind to pursue his lifelong dream of working full time in the visual arts. To support his artistic pursuits, he runs a successful commercial photography studio in the Glassworks Building in downtown Louisville. Commercially, David specializes in photographing glass artwork for galleries and artists across the country.