Inverted Portal, Tippet Rise Art Center. © James Florio.
James Florio is a photographer focused on the built environment and the life surrounding it. Based in Evergreen, Colorado, Florio is currently an artist-in-residence at the Tippet Rise Art Center in Montana. His recent work includes various long-term projects documenting the unique changes of nature, climate, and time on architecture and landscapes. James Florio collaborated with editor Iker Gil to document the first twenty years of the Boston- and Madrid-based Ensamble Studio at a key moment in their career for the book Radical Logic: On the Work of Ensamble Studio. Remarkable structures, such as the Hemeroscopium House in Madrid, the SGAE Central Office in Santiago de Compostela, The Truffle in Costa da Morte, and Structures of Landscape for Tippet Rise Art Center in Montana, their Ca’n Terra House, and Ensamble Fabrica are documented with a remarkable visual consistency.
“I am very happy that James is receiving the Julius Shulman Institute Excellence in Photography Award, recognizing his remarkable work. Working alongside him on the book Radical Logic allowed me to witness firsthand the commitment and thoughtfulness behind each of his photographs. He approaches his subjects patiently, documenting them across multiple weather conditions and seasons to fully convey the rich relationship between time, landscape, and the built environment. His photographic work certainly helped me see and appreciate Ensamble Studio’s work from a new perspective,” stated Iker Gil, architect and director of MAS Studio.
“James Florio has used photography to take us on an adventure of discovery: documenting the working method of unique architecture practice Ensamble Studio. Collaborating with the architects, Florio reveals the slow and experimental process in the making of unique architecture and landscape disruptions,” said Barbara Bestor, Executive Director of the Julius Shulman Institute.
Past JSI Excellence in Photography Award honorees include Catherine Opie, James Welling, Victoria Sambunaris, Benny Chan, Livia Corona Benjamin, and Iwan Baan.
On Light, Time, and Materiality will present a selection of images by Florio from Radical Logic and will be exhibited at The BAG (2030 Hyperion Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA) from April 22 until June 3, 2022, with a free public opening on April 22, 6-8 pm. This year Woodbury University’s JSI is presenting a “triple header” exhibition of the winners of the Julius Shulman Institute Award for Excellence in Photography from 2020 (Victoria Sambunaris), 2021 (Lee Bey), and 2022 (James Florio), at a new exhibition space in Silver Lake, Los Angeles.
Congratulations James!
About the Julius Shulman Institute
Julius Shulman established the Julius Shulman Institute in 1995 with the goal of promoting an appreciation and understanding of the built environment, particularly as mediated by photography. This mission is carried out through public programming, educational outreach, and research opportunities. Focused on Shulman’s enduring involvement in the principles of modernism, the JSI is informed by Shulman’s sense of the social responsibility of the designer and imbued by his passion for teaching. The Institute sponsors exhibitions, lectures, seminars, tours, and educational workshops for community organizations and schools at all levels.