Jon Michael Anzalone

jon.anzalone@gmail.com

Since 2005, Jon Michael Anzalone has been traveling to fascinating places and shooting immersive analog photography. His career began as one of experimentation and an outlet for emotional exorcisms, and has since evolved those practices into spiritual, politically-informed explorations of challenging places and their inhabitants.

In 2011's Khamra Obscura, JMA shot 24 rolls of film in 24 hours consecutively while walking Istanbul, presenting all of the photographs in sequence. The work travels diverse parts of the city showing the city change neighbohood by neighborhood, and hour by hour, but also illustrates the artistic process as momentum builds from minor images to significant ones.

In 2012, JMA traveled in the Georgian city of Tbilisi and historically inaccessible Svaneti, in a work explored how the artist's aesthetic would be affected inside of his preferred urban setting to one stripped away from those comforts. This reflects the corresponding forms of Tbilisi's "polished" culture and the Georgian understanding of Svaneti as its ancient, isolated cultural soul.

In 2015's Ayb, he explores Armenia during its Genocide Centennial commemorations from his perspective as a new husband who wants to understand the history and culture that he will need to honor and shepherd for his future family. The work travels through ancient histories, religious ceremonies and memorials, recent conflicts, and war as he comes to terms with everything from a humanist perspective.