On The Beach, a stunning collection of bold and aggressive portraits by Jacques Garnier and Douglas McCulloh captures the essence and chaos of life at American beaches. Unrehearsed, unposed and natural–part voyeur and part being seen, On The Beach starts with a powerfully straightforward idea – go to beaches and capture a chance sampling of beachgoers. The idea of sampling drives the project. In the words of artist Sol LeWitt, “the idea becomes the machine that makes the art.”
Photographing people at the beach is an aggression. The brutally honest images in On The Beach are decidedly different. Part happening, part ritual, part spontaneous ballet, these portraits meet at the intersection of chance and magic.
“Garnier and McCulloh’s odd beach populace are more akin to those found in Diane Arbus’ New York City or August Sander’s Germany who, each in their own way, approached their native lands as unfamiliar ones... In the case of these artists, their portraits are not only documentaries, but allegories for their times.” (from the introduction of On The Beach by Tyler Stallings, director of the UCR Sweeney Gallery.)