Language . . . Images and Text

Gary Bishop
December 10-January 7, 2012
Opening reception Saturday, December 10, 6:30-8:30 pm

How does meaning get into the image? Where does it end? And if it ends, what is there beyond?—Roland Barthes

Gary Bishop is a Dallas native artist compelled to document life. The artist's curiosity has taken his work to many different facets, from celebrity portraits to Dallas landmarks and familiar places. Bishop's professional career includes full time faculty member at Collin College, and adjunct instructor of photography at East Texas State University, Journalism Department.

Bishop has been a professional still photographer since 1969, specializing in photojournalism, editorial and commercial photography. He has also produced promotional, marketing and special-interest videos and films. Bishop has photographed for and has had work published in major national and international magazines. States the artist:

"I feel it has long been my job as an artist to invoke a dialogue between my art and the viewer. This dialogue is often an abstraction to others, but to me it is anchored in reality. This show is my exploration of image and text, bringing the concept of vernacular to question. I encourage the viewer to decode words and images as tropes and icons. Ideas such as context, appropriation, and visual commodification are presented.

"This work is presented in the form of photomontage; posing the question, What medium is to be considered language?"