Tendoy Fine Art Gallery in Dillon, MT will be hosting a reception on Saturday, November 20, 2021 between 2 and 5 pm highlighting an invitational show of works by photographer, Kim Giannone of Polaris, MT. Giannone’s exceptional black and white photographs chronicle ranch life in Beaverhead County and speak eloquently to her insight into the reality of ranching as she knows it from helping with chores, landscaping, cleaning and sometimes cooking on several ranches in the Big Hole, Centennial, Grasshopper and Horse Prairie Valleys.
“I was given a camera in my late teens, and I found that I could use this tool to freeze time,” says Giannone. Growing up in Philadelphia, PA, her early subjects reflected the cultural diversity of a cityscape in contrast to her present focus on ranching. Following years of travel that include hiking the Appalachian Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail from Mexico to Canada in 2014, Giannone seems remarkably at home in rural Montana; moreover, her fresh eyes on subjects Montanans often take for granted lend her work a remarkable authenticity. “The curated culture of the “American West” has often left out the toil, the labor, the passion, and the investment that ranchers put into their work. Their entire livelihood is dependent on the health of their cattle, the price of resources and of their product in the market and most of all, mother nature,” writes Giannone, whose talents also extend to writing. Quick to give credit to several positive influences in her life, she has a genuine appreciation for the people, land, and animals she has come to know and respect. “I’ve had the privilege of spending time with some truly amazing and beautiful people out here in Southwest Montana. The intense tapestry of their lives is so interwoven with time, tradition, pride, craftsmanship, passion, and extremely hard work. The hot coals of an age-old lifestyle are still burning in the hearth of American culture, but as time moves on, the feeling that ranching will become more and more sparse seems to feel more real.” Giannone’s photographic works are truly an artistically sound, sensitive and well-rendered expression of love for what she sees as a threatened way of life.
Coincidentally, work by Giannone will be included in a book titled “Before the Change” which releases on November 19th. The book, published by Paradigm Publishing in conjunction with Adidas Skateboarding, is a collaboration between 17 International artists. Giannone’s work can be viewed at www.kimgiannone.com.
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