Maine news, sports, weather from Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram, Portland, Maine

March 10

Portrait photographers share bond that spans a centuryCalendarYOUR ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE

BOB KEYES

— Editor's Note: Calendar lists events on Monday through Sunday. For a listing of events happening today, please see ''Out & About'' on Page C8. To submit items for Calendar, send mail to Community News at Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram, 390 Congress St., Portland, ME 04101, or send e-mail to communitynews@pressherald.com or a fax to 791-6920. Items should be submitted three weeks in advance. For information, call 791-6305.By

Staff Writer

PORTLAND — Part-time Maine resident and renowned portrait photographer Joyce Tenneson has always tried to save a little space in her heart for Julia Margaret Cameron.

Although they lived in different centuries, the two women share an uncommon bond. During Victorian times, Cameron was a portrait photographer and a pioneer in the field. She was among the earliest female photographers, and a leading photographer of her day.

Tenneson has known and liked Cameron's photographs, and is happy to be showing her own work this summer at the Portland Museum of Art, in conjunction with an exhibition of Cameron's work also at the PMA.

''I was thrilled when (PMA photography curator) Susan Danly came to me with the idea. I thought it would make an interesting comparison. Our work is a century apart, so obviously there are many things that are different. But there are many things that are similar, as well,'' says Tenneson, who lives in Rockport most of the year.

''We both have a very strong signature style. Whenever you see a Cameron, you know it's a Cameron. And critics have said of my work, that I have a strong signature, as well. When you see it, you know it's mine.''

Both incorporate allegory, symbolism and metaphor into their work, and both treat their subjects as performers, capturing them in a moment of revelation or vulnerability.

The Tenneson show, ''Polaroid Portraits,'' features 23 color and five black-and-white prints dating to the mid-'80s. It's on view through Oct. 4. Several of the images are from her celebrity series, featuring recognizable figures such as Demi Moore, Jodi Foster, Ben Kingsley, Andrew Wyeth and Jessica Tandy.

Cameron, who lived in London, took photographs of celebrities too. Among her subjects was the poet Alfred Tennyson.

Tenneson's career took off when she moved from Washington, D.C., to New York. Art directors discovered her talents, and hired her to shoot magazine covers of celebrities. Among the most famous was a cover shot of Tandy for Esquire magazine.

Tenneson called Tandy to inquire about the possibility of setting up a session, and Tandy declined. She had just gone through chemotherapy and didn't have much hair.

All the better, Tenneson told her. She would focus on her face, hands and body. ''I convinced her it would be more interesting,'' Tenneson said.

Photographs by Cameron and Tenneson share the lobby by the elevator on the first floor, just off the Great Hall. Cameron's show is on the second floor, and Tenneson shows her work on the fourth floor.

Staff Writer Bob Keyes can be contacted at 791-6457 or at:

bkeyes@pressherald.com