Artists' Talk: Mike Berns & Robert Shiverts

About Michael Burns:

from within - from without

The road ever moving on as it winds through

mountain passes, through villages, through cities

showing off the vistas that it glides through as if it were

some proud old man telling us about his life.

Lee Friedlander said, “Witness is borne and puzzles come together at the photographic moment, which is very simple and complete. The mind-finger presses the release on the silly machine, and it stops time and holds what its jaws can encompass and what the light will stain.”

“From Within - From Without” is an extended series of images showing the tapestry that America gives us. “From Within” is the awareness of the moment when the camera shutter should be released, while “From Without” is the external stimulus that determines that moment. In the end, it is about something as easy and as complex as seeing, actually looking beyond the surface of the scene that I am about to photograph, into the significance that the light, shadow, and story of that scene have for me.

As Henri Cartier-Bresson said, “To take photographs is to hold one’s breath when all faculties converge in the face of fleeting reality. It is the moment when mastering an image becomes a great physical and intellectual joy.

Michael Berns

Learn More: Instagram

About Robert Shiverts:

Photography means liberation from the two dimensions of routine. Soaring above the well-known, seeing new perspectives, arousing wonder, and the wish to fly.

Robert Shiverts has been a full-time fine-art and professional photographer for the past 20 years, with a previous career in teaching multi-disciplinary philosophy seminars in the philosophy of music and art at DePaul University.

In the middle of his teaching career, photography seized him, and he started his photographic journey through shooting metaphysically abstract shadows of people in the loop, New York, and Tokyo, and also engaged in private instruction in the art, technique, and discipline of photography for 4 years with Arthur Bell (a first-generation student of Harry Callahan and Aaron Siskind).

The spirit of his work has been kindled not only by photographers but with equal intensity by the Dada and surrealist painters and poets such as Andre Breton, Max Ernst, Marcel Duchamp, and Hans Arp. There have been seminal photographers, though, who have helped shape the actual photographic images which are decisive for him—in particular, Ray Metzker, Harry Callahan, and Aaron Siskind.

My goal as an artist is to create new forms and ways of seeing that may hopefully transcend the heavily cliché-ridden world of photography. This is a tall order that keeps me from becoming too comfortable with any possible past achievements!

Learn More: Website | Instagram

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Fun Fact: With over 100 works on display, Creative Coworking never takes a commission: 100% of the selling price goes directly to the artists. Consider gifting local art this holiday season, most of the art on display is ready to buy directly from the wall!

Plus, ongoing exhibitions by these fine Evanston & Chicagoland artists:

Raissa Bailey • David Bender • Michael Berns • Zhanna Biletska • Melanie Deal • Elyse Fineman • Kathryn Gauthier • Larry Geni • Kathy Gemperle • Ted Glasoe • Rebecca Hill • Fran Joy • Virginia Kondziolka • Ian Lantz • Janet Latshaw Simons • Elisa Ann Lindstrom • Rhonda Long • Joseph Masunas • Christine McClure • Robyn McMurray Hurtig • James L. Merriner • Angela Murphy • Kristen Neveu • Annette Kirsten Patko • Adriana Poterash • Carolyn Potts • Virginia O. Roeder • Ron Rutowski • Robert Shiverts • Sorcha • Kyriakina Valavanis • Bruce Lee Vernon • Komal Wadhwa • David Wilkerson Jr. • Angela Williams • Jerry Woods

Learn more about Creative Coworking fine art gallery here

If you have questions about our Evanston art gallery or are interested in displaying work, please email evanston@creativecoworking.com.

And follow Creative Coworking on Facebook • Instagram

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When you enter Colvin House or any Creative Coworking event, you enter an area where photography may occur. By entering the event premises, you consent to photography and its release, publication, or reproduction to be used for news, promotional purposes, advertising, inclusion on websites, social media, or any other purpose by Creative Coworking. You release Creative Coworking, its officers and employees, and each and all persons involved from any liability connected with the taking, digitizing, or publication and use of photographs and/or computer images. By entering the premises during an event, you waive all rights you may have to any claims for payment or royalties in connection with any use, irrespective of whether a fee for admission or sponsorship is charged. You also waive any right to inspect or approve any photo, video, or audio recording taken by Creative Coworking or the person or entity designated to do so. By purchasing a ticket with this notice provided, you have been fully informed of your consent, waiver of liability, and release before entering the event. If you predict this being personally problematic for you but you still wish to attend the event, please reach out to our staff in advance of the event to let us know, so we can take steps to protect your privacy.