17 Days Video Series

‘Near the Egress’ is a phantasmagoric memory of the circus, as experienced by the aging and restless mind. The viewer shares a front row seat to the sight and sounds of marveling men, women and beasts as they perform extraordinary feats of movement in suspended time.

Originally shot on 35mm b&w photo film, each frame of the moving circus was later printed, and ultimately, processed as a dry-plate tintype which was scanned and digitally re-sequenced to make a moving-image piece about memory and reverence for the spectacle.

Near the Egress, 2008 – TRT 2:30 mins

Antonio Martinez (born 1979) is an emerging artist with deep interest in manipulating the still image. He was raised in Oklahoma, educated in Nebraska (Creighton University), North Carolina (East Carolina University) and now currently teaches photography at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. He is a recent recipient of the 2009 Illinois Arts Council Fellowship for photography.

Antonio has always been intrigued with the absurdities and spectacles of life and works to produce images or videos, which represent the splendor and fear associated with his subject. Antonio defines himself as a traditional and digital image-maker whose interests include photographing spectator events, which range from mma cagefights to the traveling circus.

Antonio Martinez – Carbondale Illinois

http://www.antoniom.com