Artist Statement and Background
My artwork is a synthesis of photography and archaeology. I believe that cultural places hold emotions and memories, and it has been my experience that if you look and listen carefully, you can see, hear, and feel them. All things absorb and reflect light throughout their lifetime. The energy of light affects and informs all matter, and if you look closely, you can see hidden layers of substance, texture, and tone. As a young photographer in the 1980s, I found myself drawn towards making images of places with subtle indications of a past human presence. This led to my pursuit of a career in archaeology, which has allowed me to visit many significant historic sites and associated landscapes. Having been trained in photography, I endeavor to document the essence of these places in visual terms. This subtle sense of presence is what I seek in my photography. I’ve applied this approach to a variety of projects over my 40 year career. I have two major types of portfolios that I create – these are straight film based photography, typically large or medium format, as well as more impressionistic/abstract work that uses digital composites. My artistic influences include photographers Eugene Atget, Clarence John Laughlin, Paul, Edward Weston, Diane Arbus, Paul Caponigro, Fay Godwin, and Francesca Woodman; as well as filmmakers Ingmar Bergman, Werner Herzog, Akira Kurosawa, and Andrei Tarkovsky.
My photography has been shown in numerous juried, group, and solo exhibitions over the last 40 years, and has received a number of awards and honors with numerous invited solo exhibitions at major cultural institutions such as the Center of Southwest Studies in Durango, the University of Denver Museum of Anthropology, the Farmington Museum, the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument Museum, the Ute Indian Museum, the Dairy Center for the Arts in Boulder, the Denver Public Library Western Art Gallery, the Littleton Town Hall Arts Center; as well as invited group shows at the Mizel Museum, Durango Arts Center, Arvada Center, Open Shutter Gallery, and dozens of juried exhibitions. Finally, my photography associated with filmmaking has been recognized with screenings at film festivals in the USA, Belgium, and France. I have also lectured extensively on the history of photography, archaeology, visual ethnography, and historic preservation at professional conferences and public symposiums across the country over the last 30 years. - Thomas Carr 2022
Exhibitions
SOLO EXHIBITIONS AND FILM FESTIVALS
2020 - Traces of Home, University of Denver Museum of Anthropology
2019 - Traces of Home, 40 West Gallery, Lakewood, CO
2018 - Solitude, Darkness, Light, Solaris Film Festival, Nice, France
2018 - Solitude, Darkness, Light, Durango Independent Film Festival, CO
2017 - Conflict on the Plains, Ute Indian Museum, Montrose, CO
2017 - Solitude, Darkness, Light, NYTTY film screening, Seattle, WA
2017 - Solitude, Darkness, Light, Sans Souci Festival of Dance Cinema, Boulder
2016 - Tree & Leaf, Denver International Airport, Concourse A, Denver, CO
2015 - Expeditions, Western History Art Gallery, Denver Public Library
2009 - Conflict on the Plains, Littleton Town Hall Arts Center, Littleton, CO.
2008 - Light, Shadow, and Time, Open Shutter Gallery, Durango, CO
2009 - Conflict on the Plains, Dairy Arts Center, Boulder, CO
2006 - Pueblos of the Ancestral North, University of Denver Museum of Anthropology
2005 - Farmers, Saints, and Tyrants, Dairy Arts Center, Boulder, CO
2006 - Presence within Abandonment, BLM Anasazi Heritage Center, Dolores, CO.
2005 - A Forgotten Place, Archaeology Channel International Film Festival, Eugene, Oregon
2005 - Presence within Abandonment, Farmington Museum, Farmington, NM
2004 - A Forgotten Place, 5e Festival International du Film Archeologique, Brussels, Belgium
2004 - Presence within Abandonment, Center of Southwest Studies, Durango
1995 - Chaco and Bluff, Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado,
1995 - Restless Spirits, Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado,
1992 - History of Reedy Creek Park, Reedy Creek Nature Center, Charlotte, NC
1984 - Winter Scenes from McAlpine Greenway Park, Queens College, Charlotte
SELECTED GROUP AND JURIED EXHIBITIONS
2022 - The Eye of the Camera, Littleton Museum, Littleton, CO
2021 - Photo Pensato Collective, Colorado Mountain College, Edwards, CO
2021 – The Big Picture, Public Art Project, Denver, CO
2021 - The Eye of the Camera, Littleton Museum, Littleton, CO
2020 - Member's Exhibition, Colorado Photographic Arts Center, Denver, CO
2020 - The Eye of the Camera, Littleton Museum, Littleton, CO
2019 - Drawing the Line, 40 West Gallery, Denver, CO
2018 - LIES - Colorado Photographic Arts Center, Denver, CO
2017 - Enlightened, National YoungArts Foundation, Miami, FL
2017 - The Big Picture, various locations including Redline, Denver, CO
2015 - What Never Was...Is, Hinterland Gallery, Denver, CO
2015 - Member's Exhibition, Colorado Photographic Arts Center, Denver, CO
2014 – One by One, Colorado Photographic Arts Center, Denver, CO
2013 – Member’s Exhibition, Colorado Photographic Arts Center, Lakewood, CO
2011 – Merge (juried show), Colorado Photographic Arts Center, Lakewood, CO
2011 – Inanimate, FLASH Gallery, Lakewood, CO
2011 – Down the Rabbit Hole, Hinterland Gallery, Denver, CO
2011 – Extra-Ordinary, FLASH Gallery, Lakewood, CO
2010 - Black and White Photography: Traditional & Contemporary, Arvada Center
2010 – Sense of Place, FLASH Gallery, Lakewood, CO
2009 – Spirit of the West, Open Shutter Gallery, Denver, CO.
2008 – Current Photography on the Front Range, Sliding Door Gallery, Denver, CO
2008 – Debating Heritage, Museum of Anthropology, University of Denver,
2008 – In and Out of Focus, Republic Plaza, Denver, CO
2008 – Mindful, FLASH Gallery, Lakewood, CO.
2007 – Spirit of the West, Open Shutter Gallery, Durango, CO
2007 – Wee, FLASH Gallery, Lakewood, CO
2007 - Member's Exhibition, Colorado Photographic Arts Center, Denver, CO
2007 - Ten “Local” Artists Interpret Genocide, Mizel Museum, Denver, CO
2006 – Mask, FLASH Gallery, Lakewood, CO.
2006 - Our Land, FLASH Gallery, Lakewood, CO
2005 – Minimalism, FLASH Gallery, Lakewood, CO.
2005 - The Honest Landscape, FLASH Gallery, Lakewood, CO
2005 - Industrial Strength, Fifth St. Gallery, Pueblo, CO
2005 - Mirrors and Windows, Durango Arts Center, Durango, CO
2002 - Member's Exhibition, Colorado Photographic Arts Center, Denver, CO
2000 - Member's Exhibition, Colorado Photographic Arts Center, Denver, CO
1992 - Southern Visions, Museum of York County, SC
1991 - Southern Visions, Museum of York County, SC
1990 - Southern Visions, Museum of York County, SC
1987 - Man-made Environments and Altered Spaces, Republic Bank, Charlotte, NC
1988 - National Aperture, Associated Artists, Winston Salem, NC
1985 - National Aperture, Associated Artists, Winston Salem, NC
1980 to 2020 – The Light Factory Members Show, Charlotte, NC
1979 to 1982 - Scholastic Arts, Charlotte, NC
CURATORIAL PROJECTS
2013 to 2015 - Museum Exhibition Committee, Ute Indian Museum, Montrose
2008 - Photography 171: a Continuum of Process and Method (co-curator), Denver Public Library
2008 - Images of the Southwest (juror and guest artist), Center of Southwest Studies, Durango, CO
2007 – Capitol Hill People’s Fair, Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods, Denver, CO
2007 - (Real) Photographic Constructs, Center for Visual Art, Denver, CO
2006 - From Nordenskiöld to Nusbaum: Photography, Archaeology, and Tourism in the Early Years of Mesa Verde National Park (co-curator), Denver Public Library, Denver, CO
2004 to 2013 - Exhibit committee for Ancient Voices, Colorado Stories, and Living West, History Colorado, Denver, Colorado
AWARDS AND HONORS
2020 – Honorable Mention, Eye of the Camera exhibition, Littleton Museum
2015 - Juror's Honorable Mention, CPAC Annual Member's Juried Exhibition
2011 - Third Prize, Down the Rabbit Hole exhibit
2008 - Young Arts Magazine, Spring 2008, featured alumni artist
2007 - Westword Magazine Best of Denver Award, for Nordenskiöld to Nusbaum
2007 - Westword Magazine Best of Denver Award, for Photographic Constructs
2006 - Capitol Hill People’s Fair, Best of Show for Photography
2005 - Downtown Summer Art Fair, Best of Show for Photography
2003 - Colorado Photographic Arts Center Member’s Show, Juror’s Award
2002 - University of Colorado at Boulder, Tour Anthropology Scholarship
1999 - University of Colorado at Boulder, Tour Anthropology Scholarship
1997 - University of Colorado Museum, Van Riper Grant
1996 - University of Colorado at Boulder, Dean’s Small Grant
1996 – Nation Science Foundation Honorable Mention, Washington, DC
1995 - University of Colorado at Boulder Dean’s Small Grant
1992 - University of North Carolina at Charlotte - Graduated Cum Laude
1992 - University of North Carolina at Charlotte Chancellor's List
1991 - University of North Carolina at Charlotte Chancellor's List
1989 – Museum of York County, Southern Visions exhibition, Third Prize Color
1982 – National Endowment for Advancement in the Arts, Award in Visual Art
1980 and 1981 - Scholastic Arts, Gold Key Award, Kodak Medallion of Excellence nomination
