The Paul J. Cronin Memorial Lecture:
The Power of Children in Images
Wednesday, March 5 at 7:30 pm
Museum doors open at 7 pm
A coffee and dessert reception will be offered after the panel
DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park
Click here for ticket information
This panel discussion will feature photographers Angela Strassheim and Nicholas Prior, whose work is included in DeCordova’s current exhibition Presumed Innocence: Photographic Perspectives of Children, as well as Vince Aletti, photography critic, writer, and independent curator. The panel will be moderated by exhibition curator and DeCordova’s Director of Curatorial Affairs Rachel Rosenfield Lafo.
A former forensic photographer, Angela Strassheim’s subject matter since 2003 
Angela Strassheim, Untitled (Waiting Room), 2006, C- Print, 30” x 40”, Edition of 8, Courtesy the Artist and Marvelli Gallery, NYhas focused on the Midwest and the typical white, middle-class American family. She initially investigated her own conservative, born-again Christian family but in her recent work, Strassheim’s subjects exude a more universal significance. The lessons of forensics have lingered in her meticulously created, vivid color photographs which are infused with scientific detachment, symmetry and clinical lighting. Strassheim was included in The 2006 Whitney Biennial exhibition.
Nicholas Prior explores the subject of childhood as a continuously evolving social construction. Set against typical New England backdrops, Prior’s staged photographs explore the emotional space that children create for themselves and their attempts to define individuality through and often in spite of their adult surroundings. These psychologically charged photographs delve into the complexities of childhood wrapped up in the trappings of adulthood.
Nicholas Prior, Untitled #111, 2004, Cibachrome Print, 32” x 40”, Edition of 7, © Nicholas Prior, Courtesy Yossi Milo Gallery, NY
Vince Aletti reviews photography exhibitions for the New Yorker'sGoings on About Town section and writes a regular column about photo books for Photograph. He contributes occasional features and reviews to Aperture, Art + Auction, Art & Antiques, and Photoworks. He was the art editor of the Village Voice from 1994 to 2005, and the paper's photo critic for 20 years. Aletti has also curated exhibitions, including organizing “Flesh Tones: 100 Years of the Nude,” at New York ’s Robert Mann Gallery in 2003, and an exhibition on director and photographer Henry Wolf at the Howard Greenberg Gallery in 2005.
The Paul J. Cronin memorial lectures were established in 1981 to consider topics that are broadly focused upon changing attitudes towards twentieth and twenty-first century art. They are made possible by a generous grant from the Grover Cronin Memorial Foundation.
Seating is limited. Reservations are required. No tickets will be sent. Tickets will be held at the door. The lecture will be held at DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park in the Dewey Family Gallery.
For tickets, contact Joanna Neas or 781/259-3629. DeCordova Members $10 per person; Non-Members $12; Students with valid ID $8; Free for YMOD Members.
