Photographer Amélie Lavenant-Wink explores the meaning of choices in a new art exhibition
By Robb Helfrick
Photographer Amélie Lavenant-Wink conveys intelligence, depth, and imagination through her images. The Hagerstown-based artist’s photographs will be featured in a solo exhibition at the Washington County Arts Council Gallery, beginning on October 2. The show is titled “CHOICE: On Being and Becoming,” and the artist will be present at a reception that evening from 5 to 7 pm.
Lavenant-Wink was born in California, but her family moved with her father’s career to New York City, then to London and Paris. Surrounded by art and music at an early age, that urban and international exposure gave Amélie unique perspectives and honed a curious eye. As an adult, she earned a BA in Communications and worked in television and in public health.
After freelancing as a social photographer documenting scientific retreats and formal events, Amélie began exhibiting her art photographs in 2018. Her work has earned awards for its thought-provoking viewpoints and impressive versatility. Lavenant-Wink’s photographs also challenge viewers to discover deeper meanings within the frame. Prominent art galleries have featured her work, including the Washington County Museum of Fine Arts, the Delaplaine Arts Center, and Gallery 50.
For the upcoming WCAC solo show, Lavenant-Wink decided to explore choice as a theme. The exhibition incorporates four parts, including “The things you do not see,” and it also investigates how people make daily choices.
In a phone interview, the artist said that people make many micro-choices every day. “We have to make them,” she said, but those obligations can lead to “choice paralysis.” Lavenant-Wink said she believes it’s important to make time to think beyond those daily mundane decisions to “Choose the life that you want.”
Amélie also mentioned that freedom of choice is often taken for granted. Commitments to consumer brands and navigating other entrenched systems (such as the healthcare industry) can limit people’s actual choices.
Lavenant-Wink hopes her work will stimulate thoughtful discussions about how people make choices, especially when making major decisions that impact their lives. “Will your choices make you happy?” she asked.
The exhibition will feature 40 original photographs that showcase Amélie’s unique vision. Her work uses varied styles and techniques, and a second look often reveals additional layers of artistry and nuance. Her subjects include street scenes, abstracts, landscapes, and social philosophy themes.
The CHOICES exhibition promises interactive elements that will engage viewers beyond the traditional realm of photography. Her piece, “Through Panes of Glass,” is a fine example of how Lavenant-Wink commands viewers’ attention with inventive composition that utilizes natural and architectural lines.
With her worldly background and a keen interest in the human condition, Amélie said a quote from French poet Christian Bobin sums up why she shares her photography. “Intelligence is not a matter of diplomas. Intelligence is the strength, alone, to extract from the chaos of one’s own life, the handful of light, sufficient to illuminate a little beyond oneself.” Amélie’s captivating images, which illustrate her intellect, curiosity, and sensitivity, achieve that outlook. Her photographs engage the mind as well as the eyes.
