Hamburger Eyes Photo Epicenter is proud to present "Flawless Victory", a dual show of photographs by Oscar Mendoza and Alexander Martinez. The title is pulled from an iconic early 90's video game, a term meaning to defeat your opponent without taking a hit yourself. The term resurfaced in the lives of Mendoza and Martinez as they became roommates in San Francisco and came to mean any person, moment, or event that was perfect in it's own way. In "Flawless Victory" both artists convey what the phrase means to them using their chosen medium and style.
We often define people by what they lack, but what is wrong with them, by how they differ from our own pre-determined guidelines. But when it comes to our friends and families, we look beyond their flaws and weaknesses, and will love them for who they truly are. Mendoza has run with this concept in his series of portraits of the people in his life. He has examined and boiled his subjects down to either how they define themselves, or how Mendoza himself defines them in his memories. Whether it be an old friend playing tennis, his stepfather juggling a soccer ball, or his roommate wielding a weapon; they are all costumed, accessorized, and situated to match what Mendoza feels is their flawless essence. From these meditations we come to realize that it is the flaws that make us who we are, and what makes us truly victorious.
His eye trained in the field of ethnography, Martinez is a constant observer and admirer of the world around him. Martinez chose to focus his thoughts on the idea of victory, and how it unfolds itself in his own life and in the lives around him. These victories are not to be lumped in with the kind of moments captured by sports photographers and the like. No, these victories are much smaller, and more personal for both the subjects and the photographer himself. The photographs on display show four overlapping types of victories as defined by Martinez; public, private, personal, and projected. A fan reaches out from the darkness of the pit to grab the hand of a musical idol, while more hands touch the performers forehead as if to heal him. A grandmother contently floats away in a hot air balloon in a scene reminiscent of an elderly Eskimo being set adrift on an ice floe. The photographer plays a childish game, seeing how long a cookie can remain on his friend's shoulder before she notices (the answer is three minutes). A host and his guest sit on the steps of an Oregon house and silently enjoy the feeling of wearing a fresh pair of clean socks. In his own gentle style Martinez shows us that victories happen all around us, all we have to do is pay attention.
Oscar Mendoza currently lives and works in San Francisco, and is pursuing a BA in photography from Academy Of Art University. Alexander Martinez currently lives and works in San Francisco, and obtained a BA in cultural anthropology from San Francisco State University in 2007. Both are interns at Hamburger Eyes Photo Epicenter.
FLAWLESS VICTORY
opening reception
oct 11, 2007
5pm - 9pm
Hamburger Eyes Photo Epicenter
26 Lilac, San Francisco, CA 94110
415-550-0701
Oscar Mendoza - www.oscardotcom.com
Alexander Martinez - www.stopinternetromance.com