, ee

Voyeurism has its value

A Review: Living Evidence, Lynne Cohen and Roger Mertin at Pres lake. The luke atsell is placid, the
entation House Gallery, 433 Chesterneld Avenue, North Vancouver. dav is fading. We know the ny

Nov, 30-f40. 27. Wednesday Sunday: 12-50 Phursday 12-9) Closed Dec decoratve lights wre oine to be
24-fan. 2 engulted by the vast, enc rouge hing
. . farkness
OST OF us have enjoyed the secret pleasure, at ‘ mn lit ry figure on an
one time or another, of peeking into someone abandoned landscape. this par
else’s home or office. ticular Christmas tree becomes an NEWS photo NeW Lucente

{do not mean that we are all
peeping Toms. But we like to see
the kind of furniture others have,
how they decorate their walls,

vulnerability of human creation.
Neither Merin nor Cohen give

us photographs that contain the display until fan. 27

what sort of carpets or curtains ARCH | E human figure in any significant ;
they possess, whether the place is wok sense, But both are intensely con In the Corporate Otfice we see 3 ned-up pictures of clouds.
dirty or clean, etc. GRAHAM 7 cerned with the tracks, as it were, large, cold, formica desk on Although this is a shot of a real
We want to know what makes 2 human beings leave in their wake. stainless-steel legs, a rather stern, office untouched by the artist's
them tick in the seclusion of their Whereas Mertin’s colorful high-back, cushioned chair, a hand, it could be a photograph
own homes or workspaces. This is arts critic Chrisinvas trees constantly recall sober Scandinavian desk-lamp from a strange catalogue advertis-
a function of our nosy Parker urge, the presence of humanity, Cohen’s with a tasteless shade, and a cou- ing the disappearance of the
our natural curiosity about the tures of Christmas trees ia a variety black and white silverprints ple of sterile storage-cabinets — ail human race from the face of the
private lives of others. of home settings. But each one is dramatize the absence of it. against a backdrop of hastily pin- earth.
Roger Mertin and Lynne Cohen different from every other, in sub-
have developed this curiosity, lit- tle or sometimes not so subtle
erally, into a fine art. Voyeurs of ways,
an exalted kind, these skilled Ines in and through the dit.
photographers documeni some of ferences that the personalities of
the interior enviranments we their human owners are revealed.
create for ourselves, and in so do- There are elegant ees, preten-
ing, construct mirrors of personal tious ones, pittful, decrepit, and
idiosyncracies and public at- skeletal trees, heavily-laden trees,
titudes. under-dressed ones, festive, garish,
Mertin’s snapshot-colored prints, and downright funny trees.
individually identified only by the Mertin’s photographs, at their
place-name and the year, alt best, are visual metaphors for the
belong to a single series called Die human condition.
Tannenbaumserie (Christmas Tree Dennisville, N.J. 1987, for ex-
Series). ample, is a fully-lit tree sitting on a
There are approximately 50 pic- floating dock in the middie of a

The Deep Cove Stage Gang
is pleased to present their annual panto

"Tom ~ THE PIGERS SON

A traditional English Christmas show for the whole family

PRESENTATION HOUSE

333 Chesterfield Avenue, North Vancouver, 8.C.
Decernber 23, 27-30, Jan. 2-5
8:00 o’clock
Matinees: December 23, 26, 29, 30 and January 5
2:00 o’dock
Tickets are available from Presentation House
Adults $8.00, Seniors and Children (14 and under) $6.00
Matinee — All tickets $6.00
For further information call
Presentation House 986-1351 or 929-6764
Slapstick Christmas fun for all ages!

The War Amps Child Amputee Program celebrates its 15th anniver-
sary this year. The theme song captures the spirit of CHAMP — a
program based on the tradition of “ompuiees helping amputees,”
Thanks to you, programs like CHAMP are possible. And what cbout
the future? We will eventually become the Canadian Amputees
Foundation. Through your support, our work for child amputees can
conlinue.

On Bema Ea DEC. 27 - DEC. 31
sell for less | yc,

FURNITURELAND = |

The War Amputations of Canada

no National Headquarters
th 2827 Riverside Drive A
H Ottawa, Ontario K1V 0C4

Charitable Registration Number: 028683) 09

Pexpert. 111 E. 3rd ST., NORTH VANCOUVER 986-1361

a oe - aa ~

Wednesday, December 26, 1990 ~ North Shore News - 19

emblem of the precariousness and LYNNE COHEN’S Corporate Office, a photograph of a real of-
fice, conveys the sterility of the corporate environment. ft is part
of an exhibit at Presentation House called Living Evidence, on