Three RedLine shows make up the Month of Photography's halo event

A A A Comments By Michael Paglia Tuesday, Apr 19 2011

Denver photographer Mark Sink has often worn more than one hat. In addition to taking pictures, he's built a reputation as a first-rate photo curator and ran his own exhibition venue, Gallery Sink, for many years. He also served as the interim director of MCA Denver in the '90s, and I can still remember the enormous over-the-top photo show he mounted in the old fish market where the museum was formerly housed.

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But Sink is also the principal impresario behind the Month of Photography, which runs each year from mid-March to mid-April. Given his involvement with RedLine (2350 Arapahoe Street, 303-296-4448, www.redlineart.org), Sink made that venue the nerve center for the photo festivities that have taken place all over town. And he was intimately involved with the three RedLine shows that could collectively be regarded as MOP's halo event.

First is Thought Objects: New Ideas in Photography, for which Sink brought together photographers from Denver and across the country who do experimental work. Among the invitees are Sabine Aell, Justin Beard, Sterling Crispin, Conor King and Steven Read.

This leads directly into the impressive Discoveries of the Houston FotoFest, a traveling show that highlights ten invited artists, with the work of each being seen in some depth. The participants are from all over the country and were chosen by a jury at last year's FotoFest.

Finally, in the RedLine Project Room, is the other Sink-curated show, Modern Uses of Alternative Processes, which surveys contemporary photographers who employ archaic production methods and materials, as Sink himself has done. On view are handsome works by the likes of Kristen Hatgi ("Megan," pictured), Kevin O'Connell and Mario Zoots.

These museum-quality shows, each of which has been intelligently and expertly installed, run through April 26 and make it clear that when it comes to photo exhibits, Sink is one of the state's best organizers.

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