Bud Werner Memorial Library

A talk and slideshow with the photographer of the New York Times bestselling book Dancers Among Us.

Jordan Matter's photographs in this stunning book capture extraordinary dancers immersed in street scenes around America. In their feats of athleticism and grace, Matter captured them celebrating the joy in the everyday in extraordinary ways.  Four of the published photographs were taken in the Yampa Valley.  Matter returns to Steamboat Springs to talk about his passion for this project, how he captured such compelling photos (none of the gravity-defying images were Photoshopped), and what he's been shooting for the Dancers Among Us project since the book was published.

Jordan Matter will also hold a drawing for one lucky attendee to win a print of his iconic Steamboat image "Fill 'Er Up," which he took at the downtown Space Station and which appeared in Dancers Among Us.

Off the Beaten Path Bookstore will be on site for book sales and a signing prior to the  talk.

About Dancers Among Us
An excerpt from Jordan Matter's artist's statement: "Dancers are storytellers. They’re trained to capture passion with their bodies. The often create a fantasy world or offer us a deeper look into familiar settings. They bring to life what we feel but what most of us, lacking their artistry and athleticism, are unable to express physically. I spent three years shooting dancers around the country, and I was humbled by their enthusiasm for their craft."

A 90-second video about Dancers Among Us and Jordan Matter's process

 

About Jordan Matter
For Jordan Matter, photography really happened by chance. He never planned to be a professional photographer. Actually, playing baseball occupied the first two decades of his life – and after college, he delved into acting. But photography? His grandfather, Herbert Matter, was a highly successful photographer, with projects commissioned by President Kennedy, Vogue, National Geographic and Harper’s Bazaar, and he spent much of his childhood with him in his darkroom. His father, Alex Matter, is a gifted film director whose work has been seen at the Venice Film Festival. His mother, Paula Feiten, was a successful Ford model. Being around a camera was definitely in his blood.

Still, he wasn’t inspired until he saw an exhibit by photojournalist Henri Cartier-Bresson, with his extraordinary ability to capture a person's essence and to tell a story. Cartier-Bresson's images of humanity moved Matter. Suddenly, Matter wanted to learn how to photograph people intimately. Soon photography became a hobby. Then it became a passion. Then it became a career.

Today, Jordan Matter is a portrait photographer whose work has been featured on Today, CBS, NBC, and the BBC, in The Daily News, Time Out New York, the Huffington Post, and Slate, and on blogs and newspapers around the country and the world. His first book was Uncovered. He lives with his wife and two young children in New York.