July 2022 Featured Artist
Photographer Encourages Viewers to
Contemplate the Tranquility of Nature
An Interview with Commercial and Fine Art Aerial Photographer
Alex Ferrone
Alex Finding Her Shot
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Alex Ferrone is based on the North Fork of New York. As a female commercial and fine art aerial photographer, her works have been published widely, including in Wine Spectator, Architectural Digest, Vanity Fair Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, and Pinhole Journal; have been highlighted in numerous online magazines; and have been featured on TV.
Alex has exhibited her fine art photographs in solo and group exhibitions in galleries and museums nationally in New York, Texas, Florida, Minnesota, and Colorado as well as internationally in Italy and Spain. Her works are held in private collections in the United States, Italy and France. She is also an independent curator and juror as well as owner and director of Alex Ferrone Gallery in Cutchogue, NY. Partial Artist Statement:
With artistic influences, including Edward Burtynsky, Marilyn Bridges and Wynn Bullock, I aspire to see differently as I explore my environment from an unusual vantage point - photographing from a helicopter. Generally excluding representational elements from my “Aerial Observations” images, I am drawn to the incredible designs and natural abstractions within the vast landscapes and water bodies over our region. Presenting this uncommon perspective from varied altitudes, excites the viewer’s imagination and interpretation, and challenges their perception of light, shape and form. Find full statement HERE. |
Alex discusses her craft, her keen eye for unusual perspectives, and life as a gallery owner.
When you were flying, did you work with the same pilot? Was this important?
Flying with the same pilot was important for me and made it easier for me to photograph as the same pilot knew what types of angles, speed, altitudes, and even weather conditions I preferred for my flight sessions. The last pilot I flew with, who unfortunately retired, even kept an eye out for areas that might interest me to photograph. Pilots would often leave the region to start a new job elsewhere, and I would have to begin flying again with a different pilot. This was always an uneasy feeling for me as I had to get to know and get used to this new pilot’s skills. In the same manner, pilots also had to get used to me as a passenger and co-director of a photo flight session.
When you were flying, did you work with the same pilot? Was this important?
Flying with the same pilot was important for me and made it easier for me to photograph as the same pilot knew what types of angles, speed, altitudes, and even weather conditions I preferred for my flight sessions. The last pilot I flew with, who unfortunately retired, even kept an eye out for areas that might interest me to photograph. Pilots would often leave the region to start a new job elsewhere, and I would have to begin flying again with a different pilot. This was always an uneasy feeling for me as I had to get to know and get used to this new pilot’s skills. In the same manner, pilots also had to get used to me as a passenger and co-director of a photo flight session.
Palette II
© Alex Ferrone |
Rhythm and Flow
© Alex Ferrone |
Although a sudden change to inclement weather must be scary, was there any time you captured a photo at the beginning of a storm that presented Mother Nature’s wrath in a beautiful way?
As an aerial photographer, I was always watching the weather and forecasts. While it wasn’t a storm, one day on assignment, a fog rolled in very quickly off the ocean. It was a bit scary, and we had to stop the assignment midflight and turn the helicopter around. However, we remained in the area long enough for me to capture “Formation One.” I believe the fog worked very well here and added a beautiful layer to this image.
As an aerial photographer, I was always watching the weather and forecasts. While it wasn’t a storm, one day on assignment, a fog rolled in very quickly off the ocean. It was a bit scary, and we had to stop the assignment midflight and turn the helicopter around. However, we remained in the area long enough for me to capture “Formation One.” I believe the fog worked very well here and added a beautiful layer to this image.
Formation One
© Alex Ferrone
© Alex Ferrone
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The piece “On the Shore” particularly drew me in. It looks like there are two planes of reference. I studied this one for quite a bit. Were you at an extreme angle? It exudes an otherworldly feel.
Thank you so much. On the Shore is one of my most mysterious and favorite images. The helicopter was banking left so we were on an angle as I was photographing. Yes, it’s an odd angle and seems as if I was photographing down and out at the same time. Many of your aerial photographs give the appearance that Mother Nature has used a broad brush to paint a seascape/landscape with watery pigment. Do you look for this painterly feel when photographing the environment from the sky? That’s a lovely way of looking at it. I have always had an abstract eye, but as my career progressed and I spent more time flying, my personal vision changed. I began to see more abstractly from the sky. So, yes, I began to look for more abstractions, and they were just naturally painterly. |
On the Shore
© Alex Ferrone |
“Genesis” is a good example of this.
The Director of the Nassau County Museum of Art and art critic, Charles A. Riley II, wrote a beautiful scholarly essay about my work and included the following about my piece “Genesis”:
The Director of the Nassau County Museum of Art and art critic, Charles A. Riley II, wrote a beautiful scholarly essay about my work and included the following about my piece “Genesis”:
Genesis
© Alex Ferrone |
“The work has a stroke of verdigris that belongs in a Degas pastel and the chocolate passages that are familiar in the interiors of Vuillard, are side by side with the creamy whites of Cy Twombly. Palette, gesture, texture, and form bring to mind not only the great photographic predecessors, many of them strong influences on Ferrone’s development as an artist, but painters as well.” ~ Charles A. Riley II |
Do your fine art aerial photos push you to be more creative with your commercial work? Do clients respond well to out-of-the-box photos of properties?
My clients called upon me because they liked the way I photographed. They preferred the angles I presented that showed their properties in the best light. I’m not sure I would classify that as out-of-the-box, but because I was photographing from a helicopter, I had more creative control of the scene and could photograph an estate from a closer vantage point than from a plane.
My clients called upon me because they liked the way I photographed. They preferred the angles I presented that showed their properties in the best light. I’m not sure I would classify that as out-of-the-box, but because I was photographing from a helicopter, I had more creative control of the scene and could photograph an estate from a closer vantage point than from a plane.
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Commercial Aerial Photography Composite
© Alex Ferrone
© Alex Ferrone
Two pieces from your Land Observations series that I find captivating are “Wintered Trees” and “NYC Taxis.” Are you attracted to compositions with extreme perspective?
Thank you, I’m glad you like them. It sounds trite and obvious, but my photographs represent how I see, and I continually see from, and look for, unusual angles including extreme perspectives with dramatic lines, patterns, colors and textures.
Thank you, I’m glad you like them. It sounds trite and obvious, but my photographs represent how I see, and I continually see from, and look for, unusual angles including extreme perspectives with dramatic lines, patterns, colors and textures.
Wintered Trees
© Alex Ferrone Regarding your piece “NYC Taxis,” what did you hope to accomplish with the addition of one color in an otherwise black and white piece? The scene was fairly dull and monochromatic, except for the taxis which were all lined up. During editing, I decided to use selective coloring and dropped the color of the outlying scene down to a particular tone, but I left the yellow of the cabs and the sign. It’s rare that I use this editing effect, but I enjoy experimenting from time to time, and it worked very well here. |
NYC Taxis
© Alex Ferrone |
As a gallery owner, what do you love most about the process of curating a show?
Fine art photography is underrepresented on Long Island which has very few photography galleries. At the time we opened ours, I was only aware of Tulla Booth Gallery on the East End and fotofoto gallery in Huntington, NY. So, in 2013, my partner, realtor Richard Abatelli, and I opened a new gallery on the North Fork that specializes in contemporary fine art works by mid-career and emerging photographic artists.
For the first eight years, Alex Ferrone Gallery ran the gamut, exhibiting varying artistic styles and photographic techniques - from traditional black & white works, Solarplate etchings, and abstract and surreal pieces, to alternative photographic processes including nineteenth century techniques, photograms and cyanotypes. Works produced by photographic artists using varying substrates, such as wood, rice paper and metal, have also been shown in the gallery as well as a hybrid of mediums including digital technology, paint and encaustic wax. More recently, the gallery has successfully presented paintings, sculpture and mixed media works and will continue presenting additional mediums.
Fine art photography is underrepresented on Long Island which has very few photography galleries. At the time we opened ours, I was only aware of Tulla Booth Gallery on the East End and fotofoto gallery in Huntington, NY. So, in 2013, my partner, realtor Richard Abatelli, and I opened a new gallery on the North Fork that specializes in contemporary fine art works by mid-career and emerging photographic artists.
For the first eight years, Alex Ferrone Gallery ran the gamut, exhibiting varying artistic styles and photographic techniques - from traditional black & white works, Solarplate etchings, and abstract and surreal pieces, to alternative photographic processes including nineteenth century techniques, photograms and cyanotypes. Works produced by photographic artists using varying substrates, such as wood, rice paper and metal, have also been shown in the gallery as well as a hybrid of mediums including digital technology, paint and encaustic wax. More recently, the gallery has successfully presented paintings, sculpture and mixed media works and will continue presenting additional mediums.
Phragmites Ice Sky
© Alex Ferrone |
Sprinkler Wheels Post Blizzard
© Alex Ferrone |
Curating exhibitions is my favorite part of being a gallery owner. When we were solely working with photographic based art, curating began when I connected with one artist’s works. I would search for another one or two artists whose art would all complement each other and then an exhibition would take form. I utilize three connected spaces for our main exhibitions but curate each of the artist's artworks together in one cohesive, flowing sequence – I do not split artists per individual space. This was a bit easier to accomplish when all the works were photographically based. Now that we are exhibiting other mediums, it’s a little more challenging, but my favorite part of curating is finding the connections between artists and varying mediums to bring together a beautiful and thought-provoking exhibition.
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What is your greatest challenge as a gallery owner?
Right now, my greatest challenge as a gallery owner is coming back from, and continuing through, this pandemic. While we have been meeting many new patrons who are now learning about the Gallery, we have also seen a slight drop in visitors as some people are still not casually visiting as many indoor events as they used to do. We've made accommodations for that as we are now hosting receptions and events outside in our yard and also in our new space on the property. “The Barn” is a 200-year-old outbuilding that we renovated little by little over the years - from laying concrete and new flooring on the original dirt floor, to shoring up and reinforcing the entire structure; from replacing the exterior façade and building interior walls, to adding gallery lighting onto the existing beams. The Barn is now a new space to exhibit my own artworks and to use as my personal studio. |
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Our second biggest challenge is gaining a better online presence, but we’re working on that now.
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"The Barn" Featuring Works by Alex Ferrone
Photo Courtesy: Alex Ferrone |
Alex Ferrone Gallery Installation Photo ~ Carolyn Conrad Exhibition
Photo Courtesy: Alex Ferrone |
Any favorite shows to date? I would say that all our exhibitions to date are my babies, so it’s difficult to choose a favorite. I truly enjoy the variety of artistic styles and techniques that we have presented to the community – each new exhibition becomes my favorite child for a few weeks. Currently, we have a stunning one-person exhibition with works by Carolyn Conrad ("Affirmation of Place" through July 10) that presents highlights from three series of photographic works along with the debut of a new body of paintings and drawings - all where the artist uses the “house” as inspiration and subject in her exploration of place. |
Where do you find sanctuary?
I find peace and mindfulness when I am photographing - there’s a concentration level that grounds me and keeps me present. Both Alex Ferrone Gallery and The Barn are sanctuaries for me. There’s a stunning tranquility that washes over me as soon as I sit with the art of a current exhibition as well as with my own art – it’s very meditative.
Aside from those two places, I also find sanctuary in every bit of nature, but especially at the water’s edge, an open field, or anywhere I can watch the clouds or the stars. Those places give me perspective.
I find peace and mindfulness when I am photographing - there’s a concentration level that grounds me and keeps me present. Both Alex Ferrone Gallery and The Barn are sanctuaries for me. There’s a stunning tranquility that washes over me as soon as I sit with the art of a current exhibition as well as with my own art – it’s very meditative.
Aside from those two places, I also find sanctuary in every bit of nature, but especially at the water’s edge, an open field, or anywhere I can watch the clouds or the stars. Those places give me perspective.
Alex Ferrone's Work in the Exhibition "Blue"
Nassau County Museum of Art ~ Roslyn Harbor, NY Photo Courtesy: Alex Ferrone |
UPCOMING EXHIBITION:
Alex Ferrone Gallery Dan Welden's "Aesop’s Fables" & John Cino's "Tomes" July 16 - August 21 Reception: Saturday, July 23 ~ 5-8 p.m. |
