Curated by Aaron Stern and featuring photography by Gray Sorrenti, the NYC exhibition looks back to a time when photo-making was happening. more intentional

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An estimated 63,000 images are captured globally every second, or 5.3 billion every day. The vast majority of these are taken on smartphones, condemned to live forever in the disembodied digital world of 0s and 1s. Meanwhile, physical copies are increasingly difficult to find. For artist Aaron Stern, the mechanical whirr a beep of the Xerox printing machines stands as a staunch opposition to this trend, its deliberate, almost meticulous process of printing hard copies offering a return to a time when photo-making was more deliberate.

Hard copycurated by Stern, showcases contemporary photography by 20 artists, including Gray Sorrenti, Katsu Naito and Shaniqwa Jarvis, painstakingly scanned and xeroxed for physical consumption. Through their unmistakable vertical streaks and brutal grayscale, these Xerox prints are magical and mysterious, providing a nostalgic look back at the enduring power of the photographic medium, as well as a celebration of today’s illuminations.


Courtesy Hard Copy / Aaron Stern

Hard copy courtesy of / Aaron Stern

“There are 1 trillion, mostly digital, mostly junk, made every day. It’s nice to see some good ones in person,” Stern said. “More than anything – I wanted to do what I wanted to do. The versatile work of other artists. In collaboration with them. I did it all mainly for the process. Gave me an excuse to talk to my friends. What I put in the exhibition. And a good reason to reach out to people I’ve wanted to work with.”

As for the images themselves, you’ll have to see for yourself to find out. “If you look close enough, you’ll probably be here,” Sorrenti cryptically announced on Instagram last week. According to Stern, her contribution includes 900 images, taken from Facetime, and collaged to make a stunning 61-foot-long mural.

The exhibition is being launched from 6-9pm tonight (May 3) at the WSA building in central New York, 161 Water Street, on display until the end of the month. Get jammed with the printed media and hope the printer doesn’t jam.