#FOTOSEPTIEMBRE 2022 #AngelaMartinez #SlabCinema #ArtHouseCinema #BlueStarArtsComplex #FotoseptiembreMonograph #SanAntonioTX

ANGELA MARTINEZ (San Antonio, TX)
Stay Home San Antonio
Olly Alley Arthouse
115 C Blue Star
Blue Star Arts Complex – 1414 South Alamo Street, San Antonio, TX 78210
angela@slabcinema.com | https://slabcinema.com

On March 24, 2020, as COVID started to spread, San Antonians were ordered to Stay Home and Work Safe. Using a long lens, I photographed about 140 families on (or near) their porches over the weeks that followed. Prints from this collection were on display in an exhibit at Blue Star Arts Complex, that was part of FOTOSEPTIEMBRE 2022. My personal goal is to serve as a community builder. As the world we knew shut down, confining and separating us, I wanted to do what I could to keep people connected. As an introvert, I have long utilized my camera as an intermediary between myself and others. This habit was useful during the porch photo sessions, as my camera gave me an opportunity to connect with others from a safe distance and also capture an unprecedented moment in modern history. In addition to portraying a diverse cross-section of San Antonians —including medical professionals, educators, business leaders, journalists, politicians, and artists— I also wanted to show the wide variety of dwellings we choose. These porches, like the many pets that show up in my photographs, are essential characters in this story.

Angela Martinez is a photographer, event planner, avid traveler, and mother. In 2003, she co-founded Slab Cinema with her husband Rick. Since then, they have shown thousands of free outdoor movies in public venues throughout San Antonio. They recently opened a new indoor arthouse cinema and gallery space at Blue Star Arts Complex.

•••

•••

•••

•••