Linda Ingraham Steps Out of the Norm with Photoessay at Monorchid

Dec. 15, 2012 - PRLog -- Linda Ingraham is a staple in the Phoenix art scene showing her mixed media photography for two decades.  Linda is represented by the acclaimed Larsen Gallery in Scottsdale where her limited edition digitally manipulated, hand built photoconstructions are regularly displayed.  Recently, the artist took a step outside the status quo of her work and created a more “photographic” project of the details in and around the sleepy ghost town of Jerome, AZ.  
Ingraham’s focus for many years has been on the beauty in found objects, plants, and animals and how they change over time as they decay, whither, and fall apart due to natural phenomenon.  This project, titled Off the Beaten Path: A Departure from the Norm represents the artists’ interest in change and breaking from the everyday expectations of who she is and what she does.  Admittedly, the imagery is more photographic than most of her work, with minimal manipulation and without her “stamp” of hand-painted and resin-coated images mounted on wood.  The subjects are also a shift for the artist, from biological to man-made, although the portraits of weathered automobiles, gas pumps, and metal chains still invoke ideas of the passage of time and the erosion of materials.  Linda states, “My photo based works are usually symbols, they are not about this particular flower or tree but the "flowerness" or "treeness" of them.  I want to evoke an emotional response with them.  This Jerome work is about a particular place and is more documentary.”  Some of the work approaches abstraction with more focus on design and color versus emotion, a definite departure for the artist that shows another side of her asthetic.  Ingraham’s full body of work is regularly on display at Larsen Gallery, 3705 N Bishop Lane, Scottsdale, AZ.
The exhibition can be seen in monOrchid’s bokeh gallery in January 2013, coinciding with Matt Dougan’s show, As the Crow Flies, a combination of Matt’s artwork as well as automobile, motorcycle, and rock-n-roll memorabilia he collects.  Dougan’s show will include approximately 20 items that will be auctioned during the artist’s reception on January 12, 2013 between 6-10pm, with part of the proceeds to benefit the Wounded Warriors Foundation and the Humane Society of Arizona.  
Located at 214 E Roosevelt St, in the heart of the arts district in downtown Phoenix, the monOrchid building offers space for events, weddings, photo/video production, art exhibits, and small businesses. The monOrchid is a 14,000 sq ft space comprised of two art galleries, office pods, and two world-class photo cycloramas. The varied connected spaces house multiple creative businesses and offer unique settings for cultural events within the masonry walls and soaring natural wood bow trusses. Originally a warehouse constructed in 1937 by Del Webb, the building is an excellent example of adaptive-reuse in the city’s core. Through years of renovation and invention, the building has morphed into a place for collaboration, creativity and celebration.  For more information about art exhibitions, event rental, or office space please visit www.monorchid.com .