In Print
Articles by David Whitman
• Las Negras Theater Collective
• An arc of twenty generations
Exhibitions
Luminous Youth, Key Biscayne, Florida, 2007 • Opening Exhibition, Miami Center for the Photographic Arts, Miami, Florida, 2005 • Adventurous Artistry, Dharma Studio, Coconut Grove, Florida, 2003 • Fotografias, Cachaçaria Alambique, Salvador, Brazil, 1997 • Imagens da Bahia, Espaço Cultural Kembo, Salvador, Brazil, 1996 • Bahia: Figurative Imagery, 60th Street Gallery, Oakland, California 1996 • Young Brazilians, The Musical Offering, Berkeley, California, 1993
Publications
National Geographic Traveler • Time • Rizzoli/Universe International • Simon and Schuster • University of California Press • Monday Developments • Progreso Weekly & Progreso Semanal • Edge Zones Press • The Tech Awards Gala 2009 & 2010 • Peace Corps Online • International Calendar 2005 & 2011, Returned Peace Corps Volunteers • Brazzil • InfoBrazil • Florida Arts and Culture • Florida Today • Florida Horizons • Oakland Tribune • The Berkeleyan • East Bay Express • Bay Area Reporter • San Francisco Frontiers • San Francisco Bay Guardian • Miami Herald • El Nuevo Herald • Miami New Times • New Times Broward, Palm Beach • Miami Monthly • Miamigo • MiamiArtZine • Wire • Entertainment News & Views • The Islander News • Kripalu • Cups Literary Journal • The Tropical Garden • Garden Views • Portraits Magazine • American Theatre • Correio da Bahia • A Tarde • Homens • G Magazine • O Grito de Alerta • FR Brazil Magazine • Les Ombres • Opera Prima • Projeto Convida • Art Circuits • Cubanow • Surysur • Fotograturas • Cabaré • Diário Gauche • Hemispherical Radio • Spinning in Air • South African Capoeira Foundation • Benicio • Le Serpent Foundation • Reação Cultural • Giovanni Luquini & Dancers • Akropolis • Jennylin Duany • Miami Light Project • Camposition • Movimiento de Arte y Cultura Latino Americana • Art & Culture Center of Hollywood • Dance Place • Art Now • Miss Haiti International • Brazilian Film Festival of Miami • Tropic Arts • 651 ARTS • Coconut Grove Playhouse • Coconut Grove Bank • New Theatre • City of Miami Beach • Miami Dade College • Miami Beach Arts Trust • Winter Party Miami • Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden • Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts • New World Symphony • The Tech Museum • University of California
David Whitman
“A defining feature of California-based photographer David Whitman’s work is that the camera itself is forgotten, as if the subjects were either unaware of being observed or so comfortable in the moment that being observed and photographed was not disruptive. This is Whitman’s magic: the camera vanishes.
“David Whitman is a master at capturing the nuance and mood of the moment; his work often crosses into the realm of visual poetry. His images register an impressive thermo-emotional range: cool tranquility to scorching sensuality. In their compositional simplicity, they are surprisingly complex and powerful. His subjects are portrayed in moments that are pensive, meditative, sensuous, joyful, intimate. We view these images without a sense of intrusion or voyeurism; the subjects and the artist invite us into an intensely personal moment made timeless.
“Working exclusively with ambient lighting, David Whitman often conveys a sense of mystery: subjects viewed from behind, in shadow, or silhouetted against brilliant light. His work is frequently described as “painterly,” a quality he attributes to having studied watercolor painting for a decade with his mentor, artist Karen Frey.
“He travels impulsively, most often in the tropics and always with his camera. For David Whitman, the essence of a place is its people. He has a remarkable gift of engaging people, recording life around him with a focus on beauty and warmth, sometimes in unexpected settings—witness his portraits from the favelas of Rio. Like the legendary photographers Helen Levitt and Pierre Verger before him, David Whitman records his journeys in photographs of those who cross his path. Compelling in their honesty, these compassionate images tell stories that open the heart and expose us to our own profound sense of humanity.”
—Dharma Studio
David Whitman, Beberibe, Ceará, Brazil, 2006