Synchronica::Framing Time

Artwork: Abby Jones, Bebe Bramlett, and Evan Mcnamee

The Galleries at the Historic Thomas Center are pleased to announce the opening of Synchronica :: Framing Time, which will run Friday, June 28, 2019 – Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020. A public reception for the exhibition will take place June 28 from 7–9 p.m. during Artwalk Gainesville.

The word ‘synchronic’ refers to a thing as it exists in a moment in time.

Synchronica :: Framing Time, is an exhibition of 150 photo portraits made of and by young adults between the ages of 14 and 21. Taken together, they capture a moment in time and place – Gainesville in 2019. The 150 images paint a picture of our community of young people as they stand at the verge of becoming the teachers, leaders, parents and change-makers of our city and world. The photographs are both powerful and intimate – allowing viewers to connect to what is universal through images that are very personal.

A year in the making, the exhibition is part of Gainesville150!, the commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the 1869 incorporation of the City of Gainesville. The 150 exhibited photos were selected from a total of over 1100 powerful images submitted. A jury of four evaluated the images on artistic merit, originality, candor, and singularity. Created to be exhibited and then later archived as a time capsule of here and now, the collection of images is a voice from the present leaving a message for unknown viewers in the future. Each photo has identifying information on the reverse, so that subsequent generations can find their forbearers among the images in this marker in time.

Artwork: Rive Haynes, Morgan Balch, and Kaylin White

A call for entry was put out to high school, middle school and college-age students. Photographers from age 14 to age 21 were eligible to submit their images of themselves or peers. Over a four-week period, a jury of four, including artists and curators, scored the work for artistic merit and narrowed the body of work down to images.

The 150 selected works are fused onto specially treated aluminum in a process that results in a vibrant, archivally stable object that will last over time. The intention of the project is to leave a marker in time for a future generation 150 years hence. The works on aluminum will be exhibited for a time, then crated safely and stored. Thus, Synchronica will become a time capsule – a glimpse into the lives of young adults of 2019, which can be considered in 2169.

All the artists who submitted work to make this project a reality will be honored prior to the exhibition opening at the Historic Thomas Center. Eleven cash prizes of $100 each, donated in support of the art project by Mike Hastings, Realtor with Dawn Realty, will be awarded at that time to 11 images selected for excellence.

Synchronica :: Framing Time is funded in part through a grant from the Florida Humanities Council with funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in the exhibition do not necessarily represent those of the Florida Humanities Council or the National Endowment of the Humanities. The exhibition is also sponsored by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and Florida Council on Arts and Culture. Additional support comes from the Gainesville Art in Public Places Trust, Gainesville Fire Rescue, The Doris Bardon Endowment and the Arts Association of Alachua County.

See featured artists and their work

Synchronica :: Framing Time is one of the city-produced events in a yearlong series of exhibitions, programs, promotions, workshops and activities commemorating the 150th anniversary of the incorporation of the City of Gainesville on April 14, 1869. Gainesville150! aims to observe this historic milestone by bringing the community together through the anniversary year to reflect on our shared heritage, engage in building stronger relationships and looking forward toward our boundless future as the “New American City.”