January 2014
Artist’s Statement
Making a portrait is more than making a likeness. It is about working to capture the essence, the singularity of the individual. As the photographer I hope to create a setting and mood where the subject is relaxed and at ease. It is when they find this place of contentment and well-being that they will open themselves to you and that’s when you capture the spirit of the person.
Biography
Winner of the first Artadia Award in Atlanta in 2009, Jerry Siegel was born and raised in Selma, Alabama, and graduated from the Art Institute of Atlanta. His first book, Facing South: Portraits of Southern Artists, was published by the University of Alabama Press and Jule Collins Smith Museum in Auburn, AL. Facing South has been exhibited at 4 museums, and will be featured at the Montgomery Museum of Art in March of 2014. His book Black Belt Color, due for release in the fall of 2014, focuses on Siegel’s work in the Black Belt region of Alabama. His work documents the unique, cultural landscape of Central Alabama, the area where he grew up, and still maintains a deep connection. Siegel’s work is in private and corporate collections in Atlanta, Birmingham, Charleston, New Orleans, New York, Chicago, Washington, DC, and Canada. Select public collections that include his work are: The Telfair Museum, Jepson Center for the Arts in Savannah, GA; Birmingham Museum of Art, Birmingham, AL; The Ogden Museum of Southern Art in New Orleans, LA; The Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia in Atlanta, GA; Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL; Montgomery Museum of Fine Art in Montgomery, AL; Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, GA; Jule Collins Smith Museum, Auburn, AL; and The Columbus Museum in Columbus, GA.
