Print Size: 11" x 17" (Frame: 16" x 20" ) Photographer: Matt Stock
As an artist and architectural photographer, Matt Stock is captivated by Miami, the epicenter of Art Deco hotels and Miami Modern architecture. Dwarfed by the surrounding neon and stucco are some of the ancillary structures and buildings made beautiful by their story and the role they play in our history. As time passes, these structures are destined to become nothing more than footnotes in the history books. In the spirit of artistic documentary, Matt Stock has used the night to meticulously photograph these important, historically significant, and beautiful structures. This series, titled “Guardians”, centers on the dwindling number of Art Deco lifeguard towers along Miami Beach. These towers dot the beachscape from 1st Street to North Beach and are a tribute to the contemporary architects who designed them. “Guardians” was a three-month journey. Working between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 1:00 a.m., he captured these sentries when the beach would be abandoned and the lifeguard towers would stand alone in their vigil. With extremely long exposures of at least 30 seconds per image, Matt was able to photograph using natural light and achieve stunning images with very little post-production manipulation.
