Jay Seawell

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Statement:
THE MALL
Since 2013 I have photographed the National Mall, the commemorative epicenter of the United States. Throughout this time, I have struggled with the mainstream narrative of United States history that marks the landscape of the Mall. Ultimately, my pictures arise from deep skepticism about this narrative. As I walk the grounds, I often find myself drifting away from the iconic landmarks and toward the damaged, the discarded, and the anonymous, allowing for a personal depiction of the Mall. My work is a critical interpretation of a space that is designed and constructed to feel timeless. I resist the notion of the Mall as a place that holds absolute truths for all people.

Bio:
Jay Turner Frey Seawell is a photographer based in Washington, DC. He earned his MFA in Photography from Columbia College Chicago in 2013. His photographs have been included in numerous exhibitions in the United States as well as the Pingyao International Photography Festival in China. Seawell is a two-time nominee of The Baum Award for An Emerging American Photographer (2014 and 2016). His work is in the permanent collections of the Museum of Contemporary Photography and the Archive of Documentary Arts at Duke University. Seawell is the 2016 recipient of the Award for Innovation in the Documentary Arts from the Archive of Documentary Arts at Duke University. His first photobook National Trust was published by Skylark Editions

Artist’s website: http://www.jseawell.com