Mr.
Green's Barbershop:
A Photo-Essay by Jeremy M. Lange
August 5–December 18, 2005
University Gallery
The exhibition Mr. Green’s Barbershop,
photographs of a community gathering spot in Richmond, Virginia,
captures the look and feel of a fading way of life that remains
rich with traditions, rituals, and stories to be passed on. The
barbershop, which has been in existence for about seven decades,
has been owned by Mr. Green for the past thirty-seven years.
“I started making pictures at the barbershop in December 2001
as the final project for a class,” says photographer Jeremy
Lange. “I had seen the shop many times—it was about
two blocks from my apartment on West Grace Street in Richmond. I
have always loved barbershops and this one has such an air of times
past that I was intrigued. So I went in and asked if I could shoot.
Mr. Green thought for a minute and said yes. I shot every day for
a week to get the images for the class, and for the next two years
I went back randomly, sometimes for a couple of days, other times
only for an hour or so. I didn’t always photograph. Though
I was never without my camera, sometimes I would just sit and talk
with Mr. Green, Bill, or any of the others; watch a movie; relax.”
“The characters kept drawing me back—also the fact that
Mr. Green had opened up this world to me for no reason other than
my curiosity and his willingness to talk. I gave him prints regularly,
and he came to the exhibit in Richmond, his first visit to a gallery,
and gave tours of the photographs, telling stories of those represented
and of the shop in general.”
Mr. Green’s barbershop is a place where time moves more slowly—there
is little rush, and always a minute or two for a good story. There
is a single barber’s chair, which dates from the 1930s, preserved
by Mr. Green when he took over. There is no phone—you’ve
got to come by, or write. The only sign of technology is the television,
which is on constantly, playing movies or daytime shows along the
lines of Court TV or Judge Judy. Haircuts are still five dollars,
or three for seniors and students or any of the men from the adult
homes in the neighborhood. It is a place with a cast of characters
to beat any show on Broadway. This is the heart of the shop; the
people who pass through, to and from their lives, to share a piece
with those who will listen.
“I suppose I hoped people would learn from, would see the
past through, such tales and life’s lessons,” says Lange.
“Perhaps Mr. Green and the others got the same from me, an
ear, a recorder, a person who just wanted to know what they had
seen and who would try to show it through my own eyes. For that
I thank them all.”
RECEPTION
Thursday, September 29, 5–7 p.m.
Join photographer Jeremy M. Lange and CDS staff and guests
for a late-afternoon reception with beverages and hors d’oeuvres.
PHOTO GALLERY
ABOUT JEREMY M. LANGE
Jeremy M. Lange was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and bred in Durham,
North Carolina. His life and his work have since swung between those
two poles—northeastern grit and southern twang, or maybe small-city
community and big- city bustle—with detours into Central and
South America. He built decks in Boston and roofed houses in Savannah
before graduating from Virginia Commonwealth University with a BFA
in still photography. During his time in Richmond, his work was
shown in a number of local and regional galleries, most notably
the photo-essay Mr. Green’s
Barbershop at Art6 Gallery. Lange now lives in Queens, New
York, and is represented by ReflexNews Agency.
banner image:
Partial view of the Lyndhurst Gallery, one of four exhibition spaces
at CDS. Photograph by Christoper Sims.
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