J.R. Portman

J.R. Portman

UPTOWN
GALLERY

J.R Portman is a professional photographer whose studio is based in the French
Quarter of New Orleans. J.R. has a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Studio
Art from Tulane University, and graduated Cum Laude with departmental honors in
both majors. After graduating, he moved to London and spent a year learning the
business side of photography by assisting for world-renowned professional
photographers. While living in London, he traveled throughout Europe and as far as
Capetown, South Africa. He then returned to the United States and developed a
successful Advertising, Portrait, and Fashion Photography career in Los Angeles,
shooting for such clients as View Sonic and Archive magazine.

On April 1, 2006, J.R. returned to the city in which he went to college in order to
help rebuild and revitalize. He dedicated a year of his life to learning carpentry and
electrical work in order to help repair the city that has shaped him more than any
other in the world. The images in Uptown Gallery, a series of night landscapes of
New Orleans entitled "Terra NOLA", evolved from the experience of working to repair
storied structures in a myriad of neighborhoods throughout New Orleans. Shot in
the twilight hours around this seductive city, these photographs illustrate how this
place above all others radiates a sublime and often otherworldly beauty through its
weathered architecture and entropic environs. The word 'Terra" is Latin for land,
and also means the terrain of a celestial body that gives of a glow. NOLA is simply
short for New Orleans, Louisiana.

J.R. is back to shooting full time, but still does construction work every once in a
while to keep his feet on the ground and hands on the pulse of the city. More work
can be seen on www.jrportman.com.