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“Unite and Untie”

The new exhibit at the Houston Center for Photography sees the war in the Middle East in terms of people, not policies

A A A Comments By Blake Whitaker Thursday, Feb 26 2009

The pictures in Houston Center for Photography’s “Unite and Untie” deal with war in the Middle East, but you won’t find any depictions of chaotic firefights or bloody triage scenes among the images. The group exhibit explores how war colors the daily lives of soldiers and civilians, from Toby Morris’s quietly dramatic portrait of a Camden, New Jersey, veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, to Nina Berman’s photo of engrossed sunbathers watching a stealth bomber glide over the Atlantic City shore. Chris Sims contributes with images of playhouse-like training facilities where civilians utilize simple props to introduce soldiers to Iraqi and Afghani customs, and Houstonian Mark Bagge uses his Polaroid camera to examine how television shapes the narrative of conflict. And there’s a portal for America’s Army, a video game created by the U.S. military as a recruiting tool in 2002. (There are more than 10 million registered players for the game.) By forgoing battlefield action, “Unite and Untie” increases war photography’s depth of field to bring into focus how war influences a society at large. Opening reception 6 to 8 p.m. February 27. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursdays, noon to 6 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Through March 29. 1441 West Alabama. For information, call 713-529-4755 or visit www.hcponline.org. Free.