Astra Velum showing at Blue Sky Gallery

Blue Sky Gallery (Portland, Oregon, www.blueskygallery.org) has selected photographer Fritz Liedtke’s series of rare photogravures, Astra Velum, for a solo show in November.

November 3-27, 2011

Opening Reception: First Thursday, November 3, 6-9pm.

Public Artist Talk: November 9, 12pm.

Astra velum is Latin for "veil of stars." Liedtke has aptly chosenthis phrase as the title of his striking and intimate portrait seriesof freckled women and girls. Each piece is a hand-printed photogravure,a historic printing process which offers a depth and luminescencein the resulting image unmatched by any other photographic print-makingmethod."While many people view freckles as an aberration or blemish,I find them enchanting, unique, even exotic. More than once,while photographing for this series, a model thanked me for makingsomething beautiful out of what they often viewed as a flaw. . . .“I'm also drawn to the tactile nature of a photogravure.The papers used are often handmade, with a texture meant to be feltwith your fingertips. The ink embedded in the paper also givestexture to the image itself. For these reasons, handmadephotogravures seemed the perfect medium for a series which, at itsessence, explores the beauty of surface textures: human skin and itsfreckles and scars, like a thin veil of stars."Fritz Liedtke has been photographing since he was a child. At 13, withhis father and their turquoise Datsun B210, he chronicled theirtravels across the United States with his Kodak 110 Instamatic; theycovered 35 states in 31 days, washing suburban cars along the way topay for their travels. Today, Liedtke is a professional photographer, author,and educator, and enjoys traveling the world, camera in hand.Blue Sky Gallery shows less than 2% of the photography it considers, and is pleased to have selected Liedtke’s rare photogravures for a solo show.View more of Liedtke’s work at www.fritzliedtke.com.