Audrey Monahan
Landon Vonderschmidt / West Elm
AUDREY MONAHAN • DOWNTOWN PROVIDENCE
Rhode Island based photographer Audrey Monahan has been an artist and performer all her life. The early decades of her life were spent training as a professional dancer and choreographer. Monahan sees many creative parallels between the choreography and photography worlds from the movement involved to the intricate staging. She views both artforms as a means of drawing in a viewer and keeping their focus. For the last nine years Monahan has been directing her creative attention to photographing historic Downtown Providence. She is fueled by the historic streets and unique architecture. Monahan speaking on her process explains:
“Empty streets, dim alleyways, turn of the century architecture, and the old soul of Providence is what I gravitate toward when setting out on foot with my camera. I usually start before dawn or at dusk. I love the stillness and emptiness I find. The busy hubbub and cacophony of the day, with the chaos of cars and people, is just a temporary overlay of life and activity that is like an ever-changing theatrical play with the city as its stage. What I love to photograph is the stage, not the activity, the silent witness. And in this old city, I photograph what was, what is, and hopefully what will remain.”
Monahan has been collaborating with Blazing Editions for the last year, printing her exquisite images of Providence and beyond on our signature aluminum. Recently a dye sublimation print of Monahan’s was featured on West Elm’s interior design blog Front + Main. The piece titled “Providence Fire Escape” was produced by Blazing Editions on aluminum with a custom-made float frame. The piece was then acquired by local art collector Michael Collins who had it on display in his downtown loft that was featured and photographed by West Elm. Monahan and Blazing Editions’ collaborations will continue as she preps for a Spring 2020 exhibit at the Providence Art Club gallery and hopes to follow up with a book in the near future.
ABOUT AUDREY
Audrey Monahan is a trained dancer and choreographer who went from working on the stage to working through a lens. When looking through her viewfinder she sees the world as a stage, full of motion and performance. Monahan has a love for the old-world lifestyle, and her outlook is that the world is a very theatrical place. She has photographed everything from landscapes to portraiture and furthers her creative sensibilities through old world travel and study. Monahan’s goal is always to present a theatre experience to her viewers through her lens.