Technology, meet "Phonography"

Cell phones have long surpassed their primary means of communication. They are now used to direct us from point A to point B, to make us dinner reservations and to calculate the direct percentage of tip money to leave the waiter. And thanks to the new gallery exhibit, Phonography, people can now showcase their cell phone photography in Syracuse for all to see.

The exhibit opened Thursday, Sept. 20 at the Tech Garden to a sizeable crowd of people perusing the cell phone generated art. Curators Derek Bryant and Theresa Barry created an exhibit that showcased 75 Central New York artists along with international artists from Turkey and Denmark. For artists not included in the gallery, the pair created a slideshow of projected photographs that were pulled from Instagram with the hashtag #SyracusePhonographyShow.

“I love it, it’s been great,” said Barry on the variety of the works showcased. “It’s been very inclusive.”

The photos showcased featured varying sizes, colors and themes. Hanging from clothespins contained within a beige frame, Amanda Marzullo’s photos depict delectable confections including a cupcake with pink icing atop various foods like the widely known nacho and cheese sliders. Andrew Quirk chose to play with the old-time notion of using old Folger’s cans along with jars as a piggybank; a rustic tale of a penny saved, a penny earned.

Red lips, clowns and porcelain dolls were the subject of Ulla Hauer’s amorphous yellow and gold background of photos while John Paone chose to feature red and blue illustrations of monsters, goblins and dragons that he took pictures of with Instagram. “Everybody was taking photos of fruits and trees, but I wanted to do something different,” he says.

Phonography runs at the Tech Garden Monday through Friday, 9 a.m.—4 p.m. until Oct. 18.