Patrick Nagatani
Tap Water, Distilled H2O, Vodka—Absorbing Chroma Rays from the Chromatherapy Series 1978 – 2007, 2004
Type C print
10 x 18 inches
Racine Art Museum, Gift of Paul Harbaugh Family
Photography: Jarvis Lawson
RAM Showcase: Patrick Nagatani
January 31 – October 12, 2024
at Racine Art Museum
I am interested in how the photograph is also recognized less as a window on the “real,” and far more as a malleable picture space—constructed and contrived for the purpose of examining representation rather than reality. I am interested in the potential of photography to tell a story.
Patrick Nagatani (1945 – 2017) was an artist committed to investigating the possibilities of photographic technology. Employing hand-coloring, multiple printings, and constructed scenarios, Nagatani built his photographic narratives through props, careful direction, and image manipulation. In addition to challenging the “truth” associated with photography, he touched on social, cultural, and personal issues, including nuclear power, myth-making, Chromatherapy, Japanese Americans, and the self.
A former faculty member at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, Nagatani obtained his MFA from the University of California, Los Angeles, and worked in Hollywood special effects for some time on movies such as Blade Runner and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. He was encouraged toward photography through a college drawing class. He went from creating photographic, technically precise drawings to understanding the emotional power available through photography-based image making.
RAM was gifted over 30 works by Nagatani in 2022. Comprised of pieces spanning multiple decades—specifically 1977 – 2006—the archive features various types of photographs, including 20 x 24 Polaroid prints created with a relatively rare Polaroid camera. This exhibition debuts selections from the archive in stages—consecutively showcasing the Nagatani/Ryoichi Excavations Series, Chromatherapy Series, and works related to nuclear power.
More About the Exhibition
RAM Showcase: Patrick Nagatani
January 31 – October 12, 2024
at Racine Art Museum
Patrick Nagatani
Tap Water, Distilled H2O, Vodka—Absorbing Chroma Rays from the Chromatherapy Series 1978 – 2007, 2004
Type C print
10 x 18 inches
Racine Art Museum, Gift of Paul Harbaugh Family
Photography: Jarvis Lawson
I am interested in how the photograph is also recognized less as a window on the “real,” and far more as a malleable picture space—constructed and contrived for the purpose of examining representation rather than reality. I am interested in the potential of photography to tell a story.
Patrick Nagatani (1945 – 2017) was an artist committed to investigating the possibilities of photographic technology. Employing hand-coloring, multiple printings, and constructed scenarios, Nagatani built his photographic narratives through props, careful direction, and image manipulation. In addition to challenging the “truth” associated with photography, he touched on social, cultural, and personal issues, including nuclear power, myth-making, Chromatherapy, Japanese Americans, and the self.
A former faculty member at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, Nagatani obtained his MFA from the University of California, Los Angeles, and worked in Hollywood special effects for some time on movies such as Blade Runner and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. He was encouraged toward photography through a college drawing class. He went from creating photographic, technically precise drawings to understanding the emotional power available through photography-based image making.
RAM was gifted over 30 works by Nagatani in 2022. Comprised of pieces spanning multiple decades—specifically 1977 – 2006—the archive features various types of photographs, including 20 x 24 Polaroid prints created with a relatively rare Polaroid camera. This exhibition debuts selections from the archive in stages—consecutively showcasing the Nagatani/Ryoichi Excavations Series, Chromatherapy Series, and works related to nuclear power.
More About the Exhibition
Sample of Work in the Exhibition
Click/tap an image for more information
Exhibitions at RAM are made possible by:
Platinum Partners
Anonymous
The Estate of Karen Johnson Boyd
Ron and Judith Isaacs
The Estate of Marilyn Rothschild
Windgate Foundation
Diamond Partners
David Charak
Ruffo Family Foundation
Ruth Arts Foundation
Diane Zebell
Gold Partners
Judith and David Flegel Fund
Osborne and Scekic Family Foundation
Reliance Controls Community Fund
W.T. Walker Group, Inc.
Silver Partners
Anonymous
Anonymous
Bader Philanthropies
Baird
A.C. Buhler Family
Dave’s Wine Garage
Paula and E.L. Donovitz Memorial Endowment Fund
Ben and Dawn Flegel
Tom Harty
Horizon Retail Construction, Inc.
Johnson Financial Group
Robert E. Kohler Jr. Fund
Luanne Frey and Mark Lukow
Sheri and Frank Sullivan
Wisconsin Arts Board
Bronze Partners
Sandy and Gus Antonneau
Carol Baylon
Susan Boland
Rose and Peter Christensen
Educators Credit Union
Carol Griseto
Julia Ann Oas and Don Gloo
Hitter’s Baseball
Debbie and Chuck Hoffman
Susan and Dan Horton
Gary Van Wert and Ronald Jacquart
Paula Kalke
Bill and Debbie Keland
Nancy Kurten
Susan Manalli
Norbell Foundation
O&H Danish Bakery
Rita Petretti
Rasmussen Diamonds
SC Johnson
Harold and Lois Solberg
Twin Disc
Marc J. Wollman
Amy and Robb Woulfe
Media Sponsor
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