Roger B. Stillz

Roger B Stillz. From “Faces of Change” series, 2009. Photography.11” x 16.5”. Courtesy of the artist and ABRO Gallery by Ada Balcácer.

ABRO Gallery - Wynwood Art District, Miami

By Denise Colson

Faces of Change is the name that photographer, Roger B. Stillz, uses as a title for his most recent series of works exhibited at Abro Gallery. It is a collection of more than 40 photographs that document the January 2009 inauguration of the President of the United States.

Stillz uses the resources of documentary photography to compose this series of pieces, which reveal his intimate vision of the event. More than any other artistic practice, photography finds itself disquietingly tied to the passage of time, to the consignment to memory of what has already been. I am immediately reminded of Roland Barthes who, in referring to photography, stated that it: “mechanically records that which can no longer be repeated existentially.” (1)

Thus, these photos function like excerpts, revealing details of a historic event of monumental importance in the history of this country, as seen from the perspective of the common man. Therein lies the tremendous value of documentary photography - capturing that real and spontaneous moment and immortalizing it for posterity.

Stillz was introduced to this artistic practice at an early age when his father showed him some photos of the Vietnam War. The images, revealing anonymous stories from that military encounter, were the impetus that led the nascent photographer to discover the vocation that would guide his future life.

In an interview with the artist, he mentioned that for him the truly fascinating quality in documentary photography is that it provides him with the opportunity to share his experiences, ideas and emotions with other people. He also feels that, through his work, he may help people enrich their visual repertoire by allowing them view things that they themselves never imagined they would ever see.

The series Faces of Change, as its name implies, is basically composed of portraits, in this case individual portraits of people of all races and social strata, who arrived on that cold day in January to share their joys, hopes and dreams for a different and better country. Apart from any political implications that his discourse may hold (which I believe should not be addressed in this short review), I believe that Faces of Change is, above all, a great collage that reflects the country’s most recent countenance.

These photos go beyond mere documentation by actually delving into the psyches of their subjects. With these pieces, Stillz takes advantage of a unique opportunity to not only capture a moment in history, but also to make history by capturing the feelings of its protagonists.

(1)  Roland Barthes. La chamber claire. Note sur la photographie, Paris, Cahiers du Cinema Gallimard Seuil, 1980, p. 15.

Denise Colson: Art critic and writer based in Miami, FL.