Whether in the movies or in reality, the US has always fascinated visitors. The country has inspired generations of photographers, from Robert Frank in the 1950s to today’s young street photographers.

Boogie Woogie Photography & PhotogStory are pleased to present a group exhibition, MADE IN USA, which brings together the works of eight artists exploring this theme. The exhibition will be held at the Loft in Wong Chuk Hang from 30 November 2024 to 24 January 2025.

It is a journey that embraces the diverse voices that have defined America and envisions stories still waiting to be told:

New York is the City; everyone sees and feels it from their perspective. Japanese photographer Takeshi Shikama‘s platinum print of Central Park is meditative and elegant; New York in the 1950s under the lens of Swiss-French photographer Sabine Weiss is dynamic. Meanwhile, US photographer Louis Stettner, who spent 70 years photographing Manhattan, captured the full spectrum of color within its urban scenery.

In 2023, French photographer Harold de Puymorin embarked on an unforgettable photography trip across the Western USA, riding his Harley Davidson to explore the open roads of the American expanse. Through the endless deserts and flourishing mountains, Harold’s pictures show the diversity and richness of the United States and encourage those who dare to pursue their dreams.

Also in Western US, French photographer Isabelle Boccon-Gibod visited friends in Sun City Palm Forest, a residential community of 5,000 households with regulations so strict that she felt overwhelmed with anxiety. Only the instant film images of the sun and the road she embarked on during her subsequent journey could relieve her from such anguish.

Hong Kong artist Reo Ma‘s motorbike installation echoes Harold de Puymorin’s road trip images. Vehicles symbolise speed and freedom but have also historically driven consumer culture forward, both in the US and elsewhere. Accompanying the motorbike are selected works from Reo, each representing his perceptions of our culture during his “road trip” of exploring the outer and inner worlds.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong artist Damon Tong used the “Made in China” stickers to collage the US flag. It can also be interpreted as a reflection of capitalism and consumerism in a broader sense.

US photographer Roger Ballen‘s staged photograph resonates with the exhibition’s titled theme. It portrays a constrained Superman who turns into a fragmented puppet. When Superman is no longer Superman, what becomes of the American dream?

Boogie Woogie Photography is also pleased to present, with the prestigious Kraemer Gallery from Paris, 18th-century French museum-quality furniture and decorative art.

MADE IN USA 

Date: 30 November 2024 – 24 January 2025

Opening: 30 November, Saturday, 2-6 pm.

Venue: The Loft, 8/F, E. Wah Factory Building, 

56-60 Wong Chuk Hang Road, Wong Chuk Hang.

RSVP Viewing:  Vanessa.franklin@bewephoto.com / photogstory@gmail.com

About Boogie Woogie Photography 

Boogie Woogie Photography is a company founded in Hong Kong in 2016 to promote photography in Asia. The mission is to act as a platform for galleries, collectors, companies, and photographers aiming to develop photography projects in Hong Kong and Asia. 

About PhotogStory

PhotogStory is an online Photography platform and Guest Curator based in Hong Kong. We focus on stories of local and international photographers, and stories behind classic photos.

Artists Profile

Louis Stettner (USA, 1922-2016)

As one of the most celebrated photographers of the 20th century, Louis Stettner’s work included streetscapes, portraits, and images of New York, which he continued to photograph for seven decades. His work stands out in photography due to his ability to convey profound human emotions and everyday life with an understated yet powerful authenticity. Stettner’s work was collected by the V&A Museum in London, the Brooklyn Museum of Art, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Sabine Weiss (Switzerland, 1924-2021) 

Sabine Weiss decided to become a photographer when she was eighteen, during a time when being a photographer was not a common profession, especially for a woman. She was apprenticed under photographers Frédéric Boissonnas and Willy Maywald, and Vogue hired her as a photo reporter and fashion photographer in 1952. Robert Doisneau discovered her photography and asked her to join the humanist-leaning photo agency Rapho, allowing her to work and travel for many other publications such as Time, Life, Newsweek, and Paris-Match.

Takeshi Shikama (Japan, 1948)

Takeshi Shikama’s life ambition is to capture the “invisible” world that lingers beyond the visible world of the trees. Each photograph is hand-printed by himself using the ancient platinum/palladium technique, considered the highest quality in black and white photographic printing. The Japanese Gampi paper on which he prints is a handmade UNESCO national treasure. It requires a great deal of time and manual labor, reflecting Shikama’s intimacy with his subject matter.

Roger Ballen (USA, 1950)

Roger Ballen’s photographs span over fifty years, and he is one of the most influential and important photographic artists of the 21st century. His strange and extreme works confront the viewer and challenge them to come with him on a journey into their minds as he explores the deeper recesses of his own. Roger Ballen is one of the artists representing South Africa at the Venice Biennale 2022 in Italy.

Isabelle Boccon-Gibod (France, 1968) 

Isabelle was trained as an Engineer at Ecole Centrale Paris and Columbia University. Her life has mixed art and industry throughout her career. Having first worked on collages and installations, she elected photography twenty years ago as her core medium. Her work is project-based, photography offering the means and the pretext to explore specific territories. She likes to employ ad-hoc techniques. Centre Pompidou in Paris collects her work.

Damon Tong (Hong Kong, 1979)

Damon Tong received a Bachelor of Fine Art from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology University (co-presented with the Hong Kong Art School) in 2008 and a Master of Visual Arts from the Hong Kong Baptist University in 2013. His creations mainly revolve around mundane events in his daily life, creating sticker collages comprised of thousands of small stickers assembled into simple phrases or patterns. The work may seem banal initially, but its overly repetitive arrangement suggests an overtone. The bright colors and patterns of the stickers provide a visually stimulating experience, albeit the conceptual content of the work is deliberately straightforward.

Harold de Puymorin (France, 1982)

As a passionate adventurer, The Hong Kong-based French photographer Harold de Puymorin has lived and traveled in many different countries, including Myanmar, where his photography career began. With a keen eye for thought-provoking composition, his work is immersive and emotionally evocative, often arousing a deep sense of curiosity. Over the last 12 years, Harold has worked with brands such as Louis Vuitton and Dom Perignon. Besides commercial work, his photographic art was exhibited at numerous art fairs in Asia. 

Reo Ma (Hong Kong, 1992)

Reo Ma’s creativity has free rein in the myriad of mediums and materials he works with. With a background in fashion design, he has an affinity for hands-on production: he welds metal, moulds concrete and dismantles vehicles, all skills he taught himself. His sculptural objects thus take on a raw, unrefined visual quality that reflects the spontaneity and immediacy of his art-making. In 2021, Reo initiated War on Culture, a pseudonym that anyone can take on as long as they create works against the homogenisation of culture. In the fashion of guerrilla art, he has been putting up sculptural works since 2021 on the streets of Hong Kong, London, and Paris.