There isn’t too many artists like Lee Gainer.  Her work amasses various tools and mediums.  She’s primarily a photographer that uses her photography in unconventional means and takes photo-manipulation to a whole different level.  Lee’s Group Therapy series immediately catches my attention.  The groups of people with no faces warrants the contemplation of a world with no identity.  You begin to realize how much we rely on the common facial expressions in our daily interactions, and in a way become lost without them.  However, all is not lost for the audience since the faceless humans are placed in groups that contain similar clothing and posture.  Maybe we just need to fill in the blanks and become aware of our own existence.

What does your work try to convey?

My work explores the messages we find in imagery.  Many of these messages are quite subtle but yet strong enough to manipulate us subconsciously.  If viewed often enough, these images will create expectations, which create tradition and/or repeated behavior.  I think this is interesting.  I use isolation as a tool to allow the viewer to apply their own feelings and experiences toward the image and thus develop their own relationship towards what it is expressing. I want to leave analytical room so that the image’s meaning is different based on the individual.

The Group Therapy series strikes my attention due to the fact that you have chosen to crop out the faces of the subjects.  What was your thought process during its creation… or destruction?

We’ve all belonged to a group at some time that required or expected us to wear something to identify us as part of that group.  A t-shirt for a kickball team, a marching band, a military uniform, a particular hat, etc.  The clothes underscore our acceptance in that group.  They strengthen our identity as being part of something and likewise reassure us that we are “acceptable”.  I removed all traces of individuality (faces, skin color, location, etc.) and left only the wardrobe to evaluate how strong the effect can be.

Are you trying to create a more interactive relationship between the viewer and your art?

Absolutely.  You have to give a bit to receive anything more than aesthetics from my work.  The composition or color may catch your eye but it’s my intent for you to linger and engage.  That said, I don’t want to sugar coat anything or lead anyone in a particular direction.  Some people have seen my work and commented strongly that I am presenting an agenda that clearly supports a specific direction.  Their personal feeling/opinion is so strong that they apply it to my work.  I think this is great!  My
intention is to create an open space where the individual’s own experiences, perceptions and feelings can run around and interpret as they see fit.  I hope that they take it one step further and question why the image brings up those perceptions or feelings.  It strikes at the heart of why images leave the impressions they do and how it affects our decisions.

What are your future aspirations?

I am working towards refining my work with the intention of gaining more opportunities to exhibit and talk about it, attracting collectors, obtaining gallery representation (there are specific galleries I am planning to target), and winning a fellowship or major grant… or six.  I seek the personal success of people regularly enjoying and engaging with my work along with the financial success of being actively collected and exhibited.  While I love creating, and being challenged to create, it is a business after all.  As far as romantic notions, being able to have a studio critter again (or two) would be nice.  A fantasy dinner with Steve Martin, Julia Child, Jon Stewart, Roy Lichtenstein, and Jim Henson wouldn’t be bad either.

Short term, I’d like to mention that I am about to release a book about my Two Months’ Salary series.  It will be available at my site, www.leegainer.com, and at Amazon.  I am excited to offer it and hope everyone will enjoy it.

To learn more about Lee Gainer, visit him at:  www.leegainer.com