William Frej Blurred Boundaries: Perspectives on Rock Art of the Greater Southwest December 29, 2023 – February 19, 2024
Enigmatic rock art featuring a myriad of symbols and designs can be found throughout remote and arid landscapes of the Greater Southwest, from the Four Corners region of the American West to the Baja California peninsula in Mexico. This vast gallery of ancient art offers intriguing questions. Who created these images on stone and what were their motivations? What do they mean? Are they to be taken literally or might they stand for something else? William Frej’s powerful black and white photographs of rock art in the American Southwest and Baja California provide the opportunity to explore this diverse and mysterious imagery—and to ponder these questions. By framing these images on stone by the expansive landscapes in which they are found, his photographs emphasize the importance of their settings.
William Frej is an award-winning photographer and author who began his professional life as an architect. He later served for almost thirty years as a diplomat, living and working in Indonesia, Poland, Kazakhstan, and Afghanistan. He also has traveled extensively in the mountain regions of Nepal, India, Pakistan and in Central Asia, as well as throughout Mexico and Guatemala. Since 1970, always with his camera at his side, he has photographed Indigenous people and their environments, documenting the changing lifestyles and architecture of many of the world’s unique and ancient cultures. Bill has produced four fine art photography books since 2020: Maya Ruins Revisited: In the Footsteps of Teobert Maler (Peyton Wright Press), Seasons of Ceremonies: Rites and Rituals in Guatemala and Mexico (Museum of New Mexico Press), Travels Across The Roof of the World: A Himalayan Memoir (George F Thompson Publishing) and now Blurred Boundaries: Perspectives on Rock Art of the Greater Southwest (Museum of New Mexico Press). His books have won more than forty awards including eight “photography book of the year” awards and a Silver Medal for Travel Books from the Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition in 2023. He is represented by Peyton Wright Gallery in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Figures of Fremont Origin 2021
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 18.5 x 28 inches 31 x 41 inches framed
Barrier Canyon Style, Great Gallery 2021
Panchromatic sliver halide print on Ilford 190 gram black and white paper with UV coating #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 32 x 56 inches
Serpent On Desert Varnish
2021
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 18.5 x 28 inches 31 x 41 inches framed
Jornada Style Petroglyphs, Three Rivers 2021
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 13 x 20.25 inches 22 x 28 inches framed
Cueva Pintada, Great Gallery 2021
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 13 x 20.25 inches 22 x 28 inches framed
Two Macaws and a Quadraped Enclosed by Dots 2022
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 18.5 x 28 inches 31 x 41 inches framed
Great Gallery Anthropomorphic Forms 2021
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 28 x 18.5 inches 41 x 31 inches framed
Holy Ghost Panel, Great Gallery 2021
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 18.5 x 28 inches 31 x 41 inches framed
A Surreal Barrier Canyon Style Figure with Small Animals Above its Shoulders 2022
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 20 x 13 inches 28 x 22 inches framed
Barrier Canyon Style Anthropomorphs 2021
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 13 x 20.25 inches 22 x 28 inches framed
Ute Horses and War Shields 2021
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 13 x 20.25 inches 22 x 28 inches framed
Paired Horned Serpents, Pueblo IV, New Mexico 2021
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 18.5 x 27.75 inches 30.75 x 40.75 inches framed
Large Animal with Long, Undulating Tail
2021
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 18.5 x 28 inches 31 x 41 inches framed
Jornada Style Petroglyphs
2021
Panchromatic silver halide print on Ilford 190 gram black and white paper with UV coating #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 45 x 30 inches
Petroglyph on a Rocky Outcrop 2021
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 18.5 x 28 inches 31 x 41 inches framed
Joined Concentric Circles, Male Figure and Bighorn Sheep
2022
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 18.5 x 28 inches 31 x 41 inches framed
A Large Bear and Tiny Hunters
2022
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 13 x 20.inches 22 x 28 inches framed
San Juan Basketmaker Site
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 20 x 13 .inches 25 x 20 inches framed
2021
Flat Iron Panel 2022
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 13 x 20.25 inches 22 x 28 inches framed
Barrier Canyon Style Hunter-Gatherers 2021
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 13 x 20.25 inches 22 x 28 inches framed
Bighorn Sheep Shaman
2022
Archival ink on Epson exhibition fiber paper #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 13 x 20 inches 22 x 28 inches framed
Hands, New Mexico Petroglyphs
2021
Panchromatic silver halide print on Ilford 190 gram black and white paper with UV coating #1 of 10 signed, titled and dated front signed, titled, dated and numbered verso 48 x 32 inches