Exhibition of Photographs by Marina Vernicos
"Through the Lens of Time," an exhibition of photographs by Greek artist Marina Vernicos was hosted recently by Millenia Fine Art Collection at the Manhattan's Time Warner Center. Vast and serene landscapes from the shores of the Greek islands, the endless blue waters of the Aegean Sea and the fiery deserts of Namibia are some of the themes for her recent work in which a sea-like movement is constant even when the seemingly motionless Sahara sand is captured. Her unique photographs seize fleeting, peaceful moments through space and time.
Vernicos' captivating photographs that frame our world, consciously avoid any rendering of human form and trace. Her work seeks to gently remind us of a tranquil, silent world, one that offers a refuge from the disquietude of modern life. It is this persistent presence of silence in Vernicos' work that allows for an overwhelming intensity and focus on an untouched view of nature.
When speaking about photography as her chosen field of creativity, Vernicos reveals that, "The act of recording the world around us is an emotive one, and it was the search for this experience that made photography both my passion and a means of self-expression." She continues to state that, "Most of my photographs are unprepared, taken on the spur of the moment. I focus my lens on images as undistorted by and independent of time as possible, in the belief that here is always another version of the same reality." As such, Vernicos' work is imbued with a sense of the timelessness.
Time and again in Vernicos' work, images of Greece and the Greek islands reappear. To this, she says, "Wherever in the world I have traveled, Greece- and the Greek islands, in particular- have always been my reference and my point of return. My homeland is a cradle of beauty and moderation."
Yet Vernicos' work reaches far beyond the borders of Greece and its stunning archipelago. Certain photographs from Namibia, Colombia and the Maldives have been included in this exhibition. Her motivation for this is "to juxtapose the Aegean's familiar light with the mysterious aspect of unique and distant places in order to create a playful comparison." The onus is thus placed upon the viewer to look, judge and compare what we see in our world, and how Vernicos captures her own sense of reality and time.
Born in Athens, Greece in 1976, Vernicos has exhibited predominantly in Europe, including London and Athens (www.marinavernicos.com). This is her first time exhibiting in New York City and with Millenia Fine Art Collection. Vernicos attended Emerson College in Boston, where she studied Communications, followed by a degree in Business Administration and Management at the Harvard University Extension School. After returning to Athens in 2001, Vernicos joined the family business Vernicos Yachts. Throughout her schooling and business career, photography has always been and continues to be Vernicos's creative passion. She is married to entrepreneur Miltos Kambourides, founder of Dolphin Capital. She travels extensively, always searching for spontaneous inspiration; a testament to the pricelessness of the moment.
