Brittany Petronella, a recent graduate from the Conservatory of Art and Design at SUNY Purchase, received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography. During her time at Purchase, she was awarded the Outstanding Junior in Photography Award and won Shoot the Face’s international Photography award. She lives in Nyack, NY, where one of her biggest inspirations, Edward Hopper also grew up and lived. Brittany was recognized by The Edward Hopper House of Nyack in 2012, where she was one out of ten artists in Rockland County to receive the Artistic Curiosity Award, which to this day, she believes is the reason she followed her natural curiosity photographically. Brittany recently finished up her internship at The Guggenheim Museum and is excited to see where here creative journey takes her.
SHOTGUN
In 1886 Karl Benz created the first gasoline powered automobile and cars remain to be primarily designed by male engineers. As time progressed, cars grew and revolved around men, granting them mobility, while forcing women to believe they weren’t as capable controlling a vehicle themselves.
SHOTGUN explores a photo narrative of a female character who struggles with control and embraces the pleasure and pain caused by intimacy. Power plays a crucial role in the photographs in addition to the symbol of the car. Brittany makes this work to understand intimacy, as well as understanding power. With these photographs she questions intimacy and power; the power of women in relation to the power of men. The power we give other people and the power we demand. The power of memory and the mind. What we chose to remember and the moments we cannot erase. The power of love. The power of anxiety and the power of impermanence. The power it takes to just.. let go.
To view more of their work please visit their website.