Our previous post below spoke of the unique and powerful effect photography can have in all aspects of society. It's also great to see an example of how much fun photography can be as well, with equally powerful results.
If you've walked through the streets of downtown Stamford this summer, you may have noticed that it's been overrun by "Cats & Dogs"! Statues of Cats & Dogs that is, for each year Stamford Downtown hosts a distinguished outdoor sculpture exhibit & this year, 40 oversized, originally designed and painted fiberglass cats and dogs have gone on display on the streets and parks of downtown Stamford from June through August. And Denise Ryan of Greenwich and her 11 year old niece Isabel Lane have started a unique photographic project involving some of these sculptures.
We met Denise as she came into Camera Wholesalers a week ago with her memory card and some of her images on copy paper. We instantly suggested that she print her images as actual photographs to see their true quality and touch them up a little bit. Denise was very pleased with the results, promised to keep tabs with us & come back with the resulting images to make a photo book in our store. Imagine our surprise when we saw the front page of Tuesday's (July 27) " Stamford Advocate" & Denise's photos were printed along with a feature article by Olivia Just called " Pet Project ", describing how Denise & Isabel made this art show an interactive experience.
To quote Ms. Just's article, "Ryan, of Stamford, and Isabel, of Greenwich, have been taking themed photographs of this year's exhibit of sculptured cats and dogs, with Isabel dressing in an assortment of costumes and posing with the statues. The pose and costume vary with the statues. For "Catson Pollock," the colorfully splattered cat, Isabel wore a paint-smeared shirt and posed with a paintbrush, while for the "Dog Tales" statue outside the Ferguson Library, Isabel donned a librarian's glasses and posed with the book "Teach Your Dog to Read."
We congratulate Denise and Isabel in their efforts and their new found local fame. We're also overjoyed by the sheer joy these photos bring to all who see them. The ladies hope to have 10 photos based on the sculptures taken and we'll share them with you by summer's end. To get more information on the outdoor art show, including a road map of the sculptures & their locations, click onto the following link from Stamford Downtown's webpage: http://www.stamford-downtown.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=124 and to see Olivia Just's article from Tuesday's Stamford Advocate, click onto the following link: http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/local/article/Pet-project-Girls-and-aunt-bring-purr-formance-591614.php (Photos by Denise Ryan)