Savannah, 1978
In Salvador Dali’s painting “The Persistence of Memory,” melting clocks suggest that no matter how hard and fixed something may seem in the moment, over time, everything changes. Live long enough, and you start to understand. I don’t mean that you understand the adage, “Change is the only constant.” I mean on a cellular level you recognize the steady, incessant, relentless drive of change, happening in every moment, everywhere. Seeing change is a little like Ernest Hemingway once described bankruptcy: it happens two ways; gradually, and then suddenly.
As I remember it, when I was in high school, in the early 60’s, Captain Sam had a boat named “The Waving Girl.” In addition to whatever other boating business he pursued, he offered picnic/swim-party day trips for groups to the beach over on Daufauski Island. That’s before there was “Conrack,” or a golf course. One’s biggest concern during those “lazy, hazy days of summer” (thank you Nat King Cole) was, depending on your motivation, to try to slip off into the bushes with a companion, or to try to prevent anyone from doing that.
A few weeks ago a friend asked if I had some photographs from the Savannah riverfront during some general time frames, for her to use in an upcoming presentation “A Walk Down River Street” (https://reg129.imperisoft.com/SeniorCitizens/ProgramDetail/3531393030/Registration.aspx). Pulling files for that has led to me doing an exhibition in the Rotunda of Savannah’s City Hall.
The exhibition “The Persistence of Change,” explores the continuing evolution of Savannah’s riverfront in a series of photographs spanning the past five decades, reminding us that we are on a change continuum that started long before each of us arrived and one that will continue long after each of us is gone. From August 28th through December 2024, the exhibit will be on display in the rotunda gallery of Savannah’s historic City Hall (open to the public Monday-Friday, 8:30am-5:00pm).
Artist Talk Details:
- Program: Photographer Bill Durrence discusses his work on display in the exhibit “The Persistence of Change,” followed by an opportunity to view the exhibit with the artist
- Where: 2nd Floor Media Room, Savannah City Hall, Bay Street at Bull Street
- When: Wednesday, August 28, 2024, 3:30pm
- Registration Required: This program is free and open to the public, but space is limited and registration required. Email [email protected] to reserve your space now.
To see more of Bill’s photographs, go to https://www.billdurrence.com/index.