Photo by Kelsey Richmond
One of Hans Gindlesberger's photos from his exhibition, "I'm in the Wrong Film," on display in the SU art gallery.

Southern Oregon University hosted a New York photographer who spoke to students and faculty, Monday afternoon, about his exhibition on display in the Stevenson Union art gallery.

Hans Gindlesberger, the photographer, lectured about his collection of art, “I’m in the Wrong Film,” which manipulates photography, video, animation and videotape photographs. His art aims to depict the relationship between individuals and the abandoned, dying surroundings in the context of globalization.

Originally from a small town of Northwest Ohio, Gindlesberger took pictures of the streets and landscapes of various isolated towns across the country. He then added characters into the photographs, sometimes assembling them with animation or alien elements in a purposefully artificial way.

“It’s an attempt to play with places and locations to question our sense of belonging,” he said. Gindlesberger explained that since the 1950s, small towns in the countryside have changed. They are places that are not economically viable anymore because they are no longer good for agriculture.

“They don’t really have any function and become touristic destinations because people want to find the former authentic American experience again,” Gindlesberger said. He made a parallel with this authentic experience to today’s new fashion to construct malls that make these towns an ideal destination for the consumer.

Thus, there is no real attachment to these places anymore, and Gindlesberger’s work renders fake construction of the tourist town. His work, consequently, brings out the artificiality of the montage. The photographs are deconstructed. The scale is often messed up and the colors are not clear. Gindlesberger was actually inspired by the silent film era when a lot of cheap movies were made, in which the images were poorly constructed and the separation between the background and the actor’s performance was obvious.

Moreover, the pictures are always taken in what seems to be transitory moment; something unknown might happen. Photography is the perfect medium for this purpose because it shows the immobility of these towns and their inability to change anything, Gindlesberger explained.

The individual may try to fit into this fake environment, but the attempt ends up being inadequate. During his lecture, Gindlesberger showed some videos of his work in which a young man unsuccessfully tries to adapt to his desolated environment by repetitive gestures. The relationship between still images and the movement of individuals goes nowhere.

Gindlesberger’s work can be seen until May 2 in the art gallery located on the third floor of the SU.