The genie and the sumo wrestler
Artist
Preston Gannaway
(American, born 1977)
CultureAmerican
Date2009
MediumArchival pigment print on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Pearl paper with Canon Lucia ink
Dimensions16 × 20 in. (40.6 × 50.8 cm)
SignedSigned, titled, and numbered in pencil on verso
PortfolioEdition 1 of 8, from the series "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea"
Credit LineMuseum purchase
Object number2017.15.4
Not on view
DescriptionDepicts two girls standing on a path on the side of a road. One girl is dressed in a genie costume and the other as a blow-up sumo wrestler. They are sharing headphones and starting at the camera.Label TextPreston Gannaway American, born 1977 clockwise from top left Baptism, 2013 Archival pigment print (photograph) The genie and the sumo wrestler, 2009 Archival pigment print (photograph) Shriners, 2010 Archival pigment print (photograph) Twins, 2013 Archival pigment print (photograph) In these four photographs, Preston Gannaway depicts Norfolk’s Ocean View neighborhood, where she lived for several years, highlighting the area’s complex social and economic identity. The strong contrasts demonstrate how the social fabric of Ocean View is intertwined with the beach and bay, and how the experience of a particular place can unify people. As she says, “I had never seen a place so eclectic as Ocean View. I find its imperfections attractive, and perhaps more importantly, truthful. As a hairdresser here once put it to me, ‘A place so diverse must be forgiving.’” Museum purchase 2017.15.3, .4, .2, and .1 ProvenanceArtist; purchased by the Chrysler Museum of Art, June 2017.Exhibition History"5 Years of Photography: Building the Chrysler Collection," Photography & Focus Galleries, Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA, June 26 - November 10, 2019.
