THEATER
Mikhail Baryshnikov is scheduled to be at the J. Johnson Gallery when the gallery opens its sixth season with his photographic exhibition, "Dominican Moves." The dancer/ artist's photographs capture and explore the Dominican Republic's affection for dance. During the opening, the gallery will play recorded Caribbean music - the same style that played when Baryshnikov shot the photography.
"The photographs are quite spectacular," said J. Johnson Gallery Director Bruce Dempsey. "He is truly a Renaissance man who has excelled in so many different areas."
Baryshnikov is widely considered the preeminent male classical dancer and has also enjoyed success as an actor and a dance company director. At 59, the Russian-born Baryshnikov has been in front of the camera and many famous photographers for most of his career. His latest artistic expression, however, is behind the lens. For the past two decades, Baryshnikov has documented his travels, friends, family and surroundings.
In "Dominican Moves," Baryshnikov presents dance images with a dancer's perspective using a digital camera. Dempsey said Baryshnikov has a home in the Dominican Republic and developed a fascination for the area's music and dance. For this exhibit, he visited exotic dance halls and roadside cafes as well as high society parties. The dance moves, performed by all ages, are native to the nation's culture.
The photographs portray more than the Dominicans performing meringue and samba to Caribbean music's rich rhythms. Baryshnikov's images show his natural affection for movement and color. As an artist, he uses light and style to capture dance's dynamic beauty and graceful elegance rather than simply documenting people dancing.
"He has a wonderful sense of composition," Dempsey said. "He uses his camera beautifully, as almost a dancing camera."
Dempsey credits actress, filmmaker, author and model Isabella Rossellini for making the initial connection to bring Baryshnikov's work to Jacksonville Beach. The J. Johnson Gallery is owned by photographer and arts philanthropist Jennifer Johnson Duke, a Beaches resident and heiress to the Johnson & Johnson conglomerate. About two years ago, Rossellini invited Duke and Dempsey to a luncheon in New York City with Baryshnikov, where he showed them his photographic work.
"Misha [Baryshnikov] has an exquisite eye for photography," Dempsey said. "His work is marvelous to look at."
Unlike previous free opening receptions at the gallery, the Baryshnikov opening event is designed as a benefit for two environmental groups. Patrons are invited to meet the artist with a tax-deductible donation of $75 (checks to be made payable to The Nature Conservancy). A limited edition print signed by the artist will also be on sale with proceeds benefiting the White Oak Conservation Center, a wildlife breeding, research and training facility in Nassau County.
Like Johnson, Rossellini is active in conservation efforts, including the Howard Gilman Foundation in New York. The Gilman family, founders of Gilman Paper Co. in Georgia, bought the White Oak Plantation in the late 1930s. Howard Gilman died in 1998, leaving the foundation to run the White Oak Conservation Center and support other causes. The plantation also has a dance studio that Gilman built in 1991 for Baryshnikov, who created the White Oak Dance Project as a retreat for dancers to design new works.
As a dancer, Baryshnikov initially achieved international acclaim in 1967 as a soloist with the Kirov Ballet. While on tour in Canada in 1974, he defected from the Soviet Union and was granted asylum by the Canadian government.
Baryshnikov came to the United States, where he joined the American Ballet Theater and later the New York City Ballet. He also performed with modern dance companies and led ballet and modern dance companies as the artistic director.
As an actor, he has performed many roles. He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the 1977 movie, The Turning Point. More recently, he played Carrie Bradshaw's (Sarah Jessica Parker) boyfriend in the TV series Sex and the City.
His photography has been shown all over the world. "Dominican Moves" opened in New York in March. The J. Johnson Gallery is the first Florida exhibition of Baryshnikov's Dominican Republic photographs. "Dominican Moves" will be open through Nov. 2.IF YOU GOThe J. Johnson Gallery opens its sixth season with photographs by Mikhail Baryshnikov, "Dominican Moves." The exhibit is open to the public Friday through Nov. 2. Baryshnikov is scheduled to attend a benefit opening from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday. Tickets are $75 per person and will benefit the Florida Chapter of The Nature Conservancy. The J. Johnson Gallery is at 177 Fourth Ave. N. in Jacksonville Beach. The gallery is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and noon to 5 p.m. Saturday. For more information, call 435-3200 or visit the Web site at www.jjohnsongallery.com.
© Copyright 2007, THE FLORIDA TIMES-UNION
