The Michigan Daily-Wednesday; October 4, 1978-Page 5
Lbstract photos evoke beauty
y KAREN BORNSTEIN.
Benson sees things differently
t people: a fallen tree is a
orizontal divider of =space;
of weeds are exotic organisms
a and chicken wire can be an
splay of light and shadow.
why Benson's latestexhibition
;graphs is so impressive. They
is heightened sense of visual
on, and transform the Art
'tudio B Gallery into a haven of
nd illusion.
n could be considered a dirpr-
subject's physicalities, ad to
any photograph is a com-
of illusion and fact. "Fact is
ity which is inherent in the sub-
'le illusion is the whole creative-
The artist must understand
s fact is made up of, and utilize
ys.
BUT IT SEEMS that the work of this
25-year-old artist from Oak Park is
based primarily on illusion, with fact
only a secondary aspect. When Benson
photographs a subject, it's his
manipulation of surfaces and abstrac-
tion of forms that makes it so spec-
tacular and innovative.
This complex,' intellectualized ap-
proach to subject matter has only
recently developed for Benson after
years of experience, growth and exper-
tise in photogtaphy of a more
traditional mode. He has studied,
photography for nine years, anda
exhibited in niany galleries and'
museums throughout Michigan. His
work has also been the subject of many
awards. Now, with an exhibition
scheduled for the upcoming year in
Paris at the Centre Georges Pompidu,
and the publication of his first book,
~eDanaan quartet
titled Photographs of the U.S. and
Europe, Benson is beginning to receive
the recognition he deserves.
The current exhibit is largely com-
prised of photographs taken on his
travels this past summer. They are no
longer the images of emotion-filled
faces, untouched landscapes of
religious satires which have filled
gallery walls in the past. Instead, they
are images of sidewalks, torn car-
dboard, walls or steam. Benson is able
to take these images arid ingeniously
flatten forms while defying depth and
space, reducing them to a decorative
mass of lyrical or angular shapes that
fit together beautifully like the pieces of
a jig-saw puzzle.
THE RESULTS are works which in-
trigue and mesmerize, for he has
created illusion, taken one image and
manipulated it into another. "I try to
create an image where everything
within the rectangle of the print is going
to create its own universe or own en-
tity," says Benson.
And, he succeeds. A vaulted ceiling
loses its perspective, becoming a lovely
series of triangular shapes in a variety
of tones. A section of torn cardboard is
flattened into thin layers of heavily tex-
tured material.
Enhancing the exhibit, and adding to
its very special beauty and awe-
inspiring intrigue, is the placement and
positioning of the prints. They are hung
with a perceptive touch for the viewer's
greatest visual appeal. And, the eye
flows smoothly, following one lyrical,
unbroken line of abstract works, all
varying in size, angles and tones.
One panel which is especially grip-
ping in its metamorphosis of images, is
composed of four prints. Each is a dif-
ferent aspect of the trees within a
forest, but with time and concentration
the viewer realizes the trees are
relatively unimportant. Although they
convey the magic and grandiosity of a
natural, beautiful setting, which most
photographers strive to achieve, Ben-
son pushes the images far beyond this
point, until the gnarled branches of
"Branches" become a magnificent
criss-cross of decorative lines, and a
clearing in the foliage of "Trees and
Grass" is transformed into a soft,
luxurious platform beckoning for a
ritual to take its course upon the
opening.
Viewing Benson's exhibition of
photographs is more than experiencing
a show of "great" photographs, which
is why it shouldn't be missed. It's
almost like taking a lesson in the com-
plexities of abstract photography. After
all, a pool of watet can always be made
to gleam and sparkle, but how many
can creatively turn it into a part of in-
ternal human anatomy?
I
Lazzl es Ark crowd
By STEVE HOOK
e chill of last Sunday evening was replaced by a feeling of warmth and
ment inside the Ark, as DeDanaan, one of Ireland's most popular
s, gave a whimsical performance of a truly unique blend of traditional
oming off a Saturday night performance at Kennedy Center in New
the group looked somewhat weathered by travel, but somehow
ged to shake off the fatigue.
HIS WAS music for smiling. From their opening instrumental to the
ig finale, a smile was the only reaction to the gay, joyous sounds that
the air. DeDanaan's music could be described as Irish bluegrass,
ng a host of Irish instruments like the melodion, bodhran, and
uki.
ed by the ferocious fiddling of Frankie Gavin, one of Ireland's foremost
rs, and filled out by the fascinating.percussion of "Ringo" McDonagh,
ergetic mandolin and banjo of Charlie-Piggot, and the hilarious vocal
of Johnny-Moynihan, DeDanaan exhibited an emotional drive that
one that of many comparable American ensembles. They played a
of jigs, reels, and slides, featuring loose, cheerful melodies that had
.hanting quality.
cluttered by lyrics, this music seemed made to get the circulation
g. Their happy-go-lucky sound was a welcome relief from much of the
one encounters today, and certainly a welcome change of pace.
.
Photograph by Steven Benson
'Corvette'
a fun cruise
i
By STEVE RIDELLA
The marquee at the -State Street
Theater tells the story: Corvette Sum-
mer - A Fun Film." Directed by Hal
Barwood ; (formerly a screenplay
writer) with a screenplay by Matthew
Robbins and Barwood, this film is no
more than a lighthearted tale of how
honesty and goodness triumph over
evil.
The tale begins in (where else but?)
southern California with the hero,-Ken-
ny (Mark Hamill of Star Wars fame),
building his dream Corvette Stingray in
his high school shop class. The car is a
beaut. Painted candy apple red, spor-
ting orange flames, dual headers, and
anything else one can imagine, it bears
no resemblance to the demolished '73
from which it was built.
BUT THE CAR is stolen within the
first twenty minutes of the film, and
Kenny is off to Las Vegas to get it back.
Before he finds his lost treasure, our
All-American Boy gets beaten by a
chain-wielding henchman, dumped in a
vat of oil, and loses his virginity to a
1'tiesi
(Conti led from Page 1)
government, the banks refused
t any future loans to the coun-
ate sector and some even said
sns would continue without
asons'for refusing to divest
tely from holdings in South
promise no future loans until
id is terminated, range from a
to remain isolated from the
of U.S. foregin polciy to a belief
vestiture would worsen the
is and social conditions of non-
LAUSEN, president of Bank of
in San Francisco, said his
ld not "politicize international
ause that would make it dif-
'stinguish which nations had
systems the United States
enough to trade with.
,n added that as much as three-
of the world would have to be
from U.S. trade if the country
politicize international trade.
of the banks indicated that
e would harm conditions for
es in South Africa by removing
m jobs and provoking social
he bank officials said they
eir presence can be used as a
ing element to convicne the
Atay in S. Africa
government to adopt more democratic
methods in treating the black
population.
OFFICIALS OF Manufacturers
Hanover Trust Company said that
divestiture would increase the chance
of violence in South Africa.
"It is our belief that a continuation of
the isolation tactics advocated by some
U.S. groups increases the risks of
retaliation, civil disorders, and violen-
ce on both sies," the bank reported.
Although some banks said they would
not make future loans to South African
businesses until the apartheid system is
removed, most of them indicated future
loans would depend more on the risk the
loans wouild not be reapid than sen-
timent against apartheid. The banks
said that the apartheid system con-
tributed to raising the risks of loans but
did not say the system would have to
end before the loans could be renewed.
SOME OF THE banks responded that
they could not divulge information
referring to their loaning policies. They
insisted that such a breach of confiden-
tiality . would damage the bank's
relations with other customers.
A summary of the banks and cor-
porations responses was mailed
yesterday by the University's Invest-
ment Office to each member of the
Regents. It is expected the Regents will
review the responses at their October
19th meeting.
Norm Herbert, the University's chief
Investment Officer said the Regents
will probably make responses to the
summary and not review the overall
issue of divestiture.
cute, fledgling hooker who calls herself
Vanessa. (Her real name is Eleanor,
and she's played by Annie Potts.) When
she finds she can't make it on the
streets, she teams up with Kenny and
they end up taking .the car, giving the
bad guys the slip in the desert, and
driving back to L.A. with their futures
before them.
There are a few short sideplots, but
that's it, folks. With such a skimpy
script to work with, the cameraman
apparently had no choice but to flinger
on the stunning car and the prostitute's
body for most of the film.
Hamill and Potts are the only charac-
ters on the screen long enough to
develop personalities, although even
this elusive goal is barely reached.
Hamill gets to yell and scream a lot
while his car keeps escaping his grasp,'
His mind is constantly on the auto,
though Potts occasionally manages to
take his mind off it. But however shal-
low his character may be, he is still a
likeable guy, and like any good hero,
gets his girl. Potts turns in a credible
performance, delivering most of the
punchlines while adding a definite
vibrancy to the flick. Hamill and Potts
work well together, though they are far
from being a great team.
But this film's purpose was not to
probe the minds of young lovers, but to
provide a couple hours of fun-filled ac-
tion, which it certainly succeeds in
doing.
NO NONSENSE SCOT
ST. ANDREWS, Scotland (AP)-Tom
Weiskopf told the story on himself at
the British Open in July. Tom, who won
the event in 1973, wanted to play a
practice round at St. Andrews a couple
of days before the first round. He
innocently assumed the greens fee
would be on the house. It wasn't.
When he checked in at the starter's
hut near the first tee he was greeted by
a stony-faced veteran who told him the
charge was two pounds in British
currency. "Do former champions have
to pay?" Weiskopf asked.
"Aye," was the answer. Tom was
then told to wait his turn. The wait was
a half hour. When he teed up he went as
far back as he could. The starter
appeared and gruffly told him to tee off
where everybody else was..
In a spot like that, you either explode
with anger or you laugh. Weiskopf is
still chuckling.
Kenny (Mark Hammill) finds Vanessa (Annie Potts) working in a Las Vegas
fast-food drive-in in "Corvette Summer," playing at the State Street Theater.
OLD AND NEW
TOLEDO, Ohio (AP)-The chances
of it happening again may be very
small, but both the newest and oldest
cargo vessels on the Great Lakes
anchored here recently.
The Arctic, a 687-foot cargo vessel on
its maiden vogage, was waiting to take
on 605,000 bushels of corn, while what is
believed to be the oldest vessel in
regular operation, the Black River, was
loading 180,000 bushels of soybeans.
The Black River,- a 383-foot bulk
carrier, was commission a in 1896..
The College of Literature, Science, and the Arts
DISTINGUISHED SENIOR
PROF. WILLIAM K. FRANKENA
Roy Woods Sellars Professor of Philosophy
will lecture on
"THINKING ABOUT MORALITY"
Wed., October 4. "What Is Morality?"
Fri., October 6-"What Is Being Moral?"
Thurs., October 12-"Why Be Moral?"
All lectures in Rackham Amphitheatre, 8:00 p.m.
admission complimentary
uint- list not certain
(Continued from Page 1)
npile a list of their owna
ick the new president fr
e four lists.
are no specific guideli
g communicating betweenI
mittees.
ore expressed concern t
dates on the unified list wo
combination of the top c
on the three lists due
ment among the committees
member Howard Epst
the faculty was not being v
le.
eason for consolidation is
n the coattails of faculty
but to reflect our own intere
ty is saying our candidat
and
om
nes
the
hat
more pro-faculty than yours and we
want to ride with that and not be held
down by students and alumni," said
Epstein.
MSA members also voiced concern
that competition among the three
separate committees would lead to
almost non-existent student input.
uld
an-
to
S.
ein PRINT
eryA m k
notTS IS
in-
sts. QUICK SERVICE
e s LARGE STOCK
OF SHIRTS
DESIGN ASSIST-
ANCE AVAILABLE
- kEinuIS A /11 a ~ A 1 CE
the ARK Presents
FRI.-SAT.-OCT. 6-7
SANDY IVES and
KENDALL MORSE
Recreate the creative folk expres-
sion of Maine and the Northeast
AKING THE
S&AT
in
K. - : 6 9.
I
r 1 0 mik I ! 111