Sean Kelly Gallery is delighted to announce an exhibition of new works by Thomas Joshua Cooper. The artist will be present.

Fortunate Islands was a phrase used by sailors from the late 16th century until the early 19th century to describe the Canary Islands and the Madeiran Archipelago, not only because their beauty and climate made them as close to paradise as could be imagined, but also because the islands were considered the closest to the edge of the Earth before the time of Columbus. The exhibition begins with photographs of County Kerry, Ireland, the birth place of St. Brendan called Brendan the Voyager who is believed to have reached the Canary Islands and perhaps Madeira in the 5th century. The final image of the exhibition is Faro Orchillo on the Isle of El Hierro, the western most point on the Canary Islands, which was once literally and is now metaphorically at the edge of the world. Cooper continues to be interested in the cultural and geographic changes that occur when old explorer routes are retraced and how this retracing leads to a new recognition of how we think and feel about place, define ideas of home and engage with historical spaces.

Using an 1898 field camera and making only one image of each location, Cooper composes his images so that the scale of the composition is not always immediately apparent. The printing of the pieces further enhances the intensely emotive nature of his work. Cooper's technical mastery of the photographic medium is renowned. The images are subtly "under painted" with selenium and gold resulting in blue and maroon tones, in the photographic printing process. Cooper's editions are usually limited to a maximum of three prints all of which he makes himself, however his painterly process ensures that each print is effectively unique.

Thomas Joshua Cooper was born in San Francisco in 1946. Cooper is a member of the Cherokee nation and in his formative years, lived on Indian reservations throughout the western United States. He has resided in Glasgow, Scotland for the past twenty years where he is Professor and Head of the Department of Photography at The Glasgow School of Art. Cooper has exhibited widely in both museums and galleries around the world. His work is included in museum, public and private collections worldwide. In 1998 Cooper was the recipient of an important grant from the Lannan Foundation, which he has been using, in part, to complete a body of work, 10 years in the making, entitled The Great River – Rio Grande Crossings – From the Source to the Sea. The project will culminate in a major exhibition curated by Michael Govan, director of the DIA Center for the Arts, and in a comprehensive publication on Cooper's work.

Gallery 1 (clockwise)

The South-most Point – The North Atlantic Ocean
Mizen Head
County Cork
Ireland, 2002
(The South-most point of Ireland)
[Fastnet]
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat size: 40 x 52 inches (102 x 133 cm)
framed: 43 x 55 inches (109 x 140 cm
TJC-186

The Mid North Atlantic Ocean
Punta Norte
The Isle of El Hierro
(The North-most point of the Island)
The Canary Islands
Spain, 2002
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat: 28 x 36 inches (71 x 91.5 cm)
framed: 31 x 39 inches (78.7 x 99 cm)
TJC-169

Approaching Nightfall – The Mid North Atlantic Ocean
Punta Fariones
The Isle of Lanzarote
(The North-most point of the Island)
The Canary Islands
Spain, 2002
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat: 28 x 36 inches (71 x 91.5 cm)
framed: 31 x 39 inches (78.7 x 99 cm)
TJC-168

Doulus Bay and Valentia Harbour
Valentia Island
County Kerry
Ireland, 2002
[Shannon]
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat: 28 x 36 inches (71 x 91.5 cm)
framed: 31 x 39 inches (78.7 x 99 cm)
TJC-172

Gallery 2 (clockwise)

Twilight – The Mid North Atlantic Ocean
Ponta da Pargo
The Isle of Madeira
(The West-most point of the Island)
Portugal, 2002-2003
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat size: 40 x 52 inches (102 x 133 cm)
framed: 43 x 55 inches (109 x 140 cm
TJC-185

Thick Fog – Looking towards the Rhine
The Thames Estuary at The North Sea –
The Mouths of The Rivers Thames and Medway
Sheerness, Isle of Sheppey
England, 1998-2002
(extreme – light grey)
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat: 28 x 36 inches (71 x 91.5 cm)
framed: 31 x 39 inches (78.7 x 99 cm)
TJC-176

Freezing Fog – Looking towards the Thames
The River Rhine Estuary at the North Sea
Hoek van Holland/The Hook of Holland
Holland, 2000 - 2002
(extreme – almost white)
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat: 28 x 36 inches (71 x 91.5 cm)
framed: 31 x 39 inches (78.7 x 99 cm)
TJC-177

Sudden Nightfall – Comet Trail
The Mid North Atlantic Ocean
Cabo Girãu
(The second highest sea cliff in Europe - 580m)
The Isle of Madeira
Portugal, 2002
(extreme – almost black)
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat: 28 x 36 inches (71 x 91.5 cm)
framed: 31 x 39 inches (78.7 x 99 cm)
TJC-175

The Mid North Atlantic Ocean
Near Punto Ginés
The Isle of Lanzarote
(Near the West-most point of the Island)
The Canary Islands
Spain, 2002
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat: 28 x 36 inches (71 x 91.5 cm)
framed: 31 x 39 inches (78.7 x 99 cm)
TJC-167

Main Gallery (clockwise)

Furthest North – Cloud Horizon
El Rio y El Atlantico
La Punta, Mirador de Rio and Punta Fariones
The Isle of Lanzarote
(The North-most point of the Island)
The Canary Islands
Spain, 2002
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat size: 40 x 52 inches (102 x 133 cm)
framed: 43 x 55 inches (109 x 140 cm
TJC-183

The North-most Point – The North Atlantic Ocean
Malin Head
County Donegal
Ireland, 1992-2003
(The North-most point of Ireland)
[Malin]
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat: 28 x 36 inches (71 x 91.5 cm)
framed: 31 x 39 inches (78.7 x 99 cm)
TJC-174

The Mid North Atlantic Ocean
Punta de la Calera
The Isle of La Gomera
(The West-most point of the Island)
The Canary Islands
Spain, 2002
(Very probably the last Old World Land site seen by Columbus and crew on their first transatlantic voyage out in search of the New World)
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat: 28 x 36 inches (71 x 91.5 cm)
framed: 31 x 39 inches (78.7 x 99 cm)
TJC-166

The Mid North Atlantic Ocean
Near Ponta do Tristão
The Isle of Madeira
(Near the North-most point of the Island)
Portugal, 2002
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat: 28 x 36 inches (71 x 91.5 cm)
framed: 31 x 39 inches (78.7 x 99 cm)
TJC-170

The Mid North Atlantic Ocean
Ponta de Gaivotes
Isle of Madeira
(The East-most point of the Island)
Portugal, 2002-2003
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat size: 40 x 52 inches (102 x 133 cm)
framed: 43 x 55 inches (109 x 140 cm
TJC-189

Near The East-most Point – Dublin Bay and The Irish Sea
40'- Men
Sandy Cove, Dublin
Ireland, 2002-2003
[Irish Sea]
(Among many others, this was James Joyce's favorite bathing place in Ireland)
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat size: 40 x 52 inches (102 x 133 cm)
framed: 43 x 55 inches (109 x 140 cm
TJC-188

Furthest North – The Mid North Atlantic Ocean
Faro de Alegranza, Punta Delgada
The Isle of Alegranza
(The North-most Island in the Canarian Archipelago. The East-most point of the island, and near the North-most point)
Lanzarote, The Canary Islands
Spain, 2002
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat size: 40 x 52 inches (102 x 133 cm)
framed: 43 x 55 inches (109 x 140 cm
TJC-180

The World's Edge – Near Furthest West
The North Atlantic Ocean and Brandon Bay
St. Brandon (Bhreandain) Point
(Near the West-most point of Ireland)
County Kerry
Ireland, 2002
(From this Point St. Brandon The Navigator began his great 6th Century sea voyages of pilgrimage and monastic exploration that, in part, led to his later recognition as one of Lanzarote's Patron Saints)
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat size: 40 x 52 inches (102 x 133 cm)
framed: 43 x 55 inches (109 x 140 cm
TJC-179

Furthest North – The Mid North Atlantic Ocean
Punta Gorda
The Isle of Graciosa
(The North-most point of the Island)
Lanzarote, The Canary Islands
Spain, 2002
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat size: 40 x 52 inches (102 x 133 cm)
framed: 43 x 55 inches (109 x 140 cm
TJC-182

Unexpected Nightfall – The Mid North Atlantic Ocean
Porto Moniz
The Isle of Madeira
(Near the North-most point of the Island)
Portugal, 2002
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat size: 40 x 52 inches (102 x 133 cm)
framed: 43 x 55 inches (109 x 140 cm
TJC-184

The Mid North Atlantic Ocean
Location Uncertain
Possibly near Punta Prieta
The Isle of Lanzarote
(Near the East-most point of the Island)
The Canary Islands
Spain, 2002
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat: 28 x 36 inches (71 x 91.5 cm)
framed: 31 x 39 inches (78.7 x 99 cm)
TJC-190

Moonrise over "The End of the World" – Furthest West –
The Mid North Atlantic Ocean
"The Lighthouse at The End of The World", Faro Orchillo
The Isle of El Hierro
(Near the West-most point of the entire Canarian Archipelago and the furthest extent South-West of the Old World)
The Canary Islands
Spain, 2002
(The ancient geographer Ptolemy designated this particular Point – 0 Longitude – or the "official" ancient End of the World. This designation remained current until comparatively modern times, when the 18th century Englishman, John Harrison, devised the methodology and invented the machinery that led to the development of the accurate sea-going chronometer. Harrison's Watch enabled the true charting of exact Longitude. The consequence of this invention led to the world-wide and official change of 0 longitude from Faro Orchillo on the Isle of El Hierro to Greenwich, England)
silver gelatin print
edition of 3 with 3 APs
mat size: 40 x 52 inches (102 x 133 cm)
framed: 43 x 55 inches (109 x 140 cm
TJC-181