fotofoto gallery presents a SOLO EXHIBITION of PHOTOGRAPHY by fotofoto gallery Artist Member: PAUL MELE

fotofoto gallery is excited to present a solo exhibition of photogaphy: “Ten Times a Day, Everyday, a Stranger” by Artist Member, Paul Mele from October 22- November 14, 2026. • ARTIST RECEPTION: Saturday, October 24th from 5-7pm. • ARTIST TALK / PANEL DISCUSSION: Saturday, November 14th at 2pm. fotofoto gallery, 14 W. Carver Street, Huntington, NY 11743 Gallery Hours: Thurs. 12:30-4pm; Fri. Sat. Sun. 11am-6pm ;and by appointment. ARTIST STATEMENT: “Ten Times a Day, Everyday, a Stranger” by Paul Mele In the winter of 2018, my mother lost her battle with cancer. Watching her physically become immobile was difficult; hearing her forget who she was and who we were was heartbreaking. It was an experience I was never able to shake. The very thought of forgetting who I am, and forgetting those I love, frightens me. Death is, sadly, the nature of life, but being forced to exist without knowing your own face in the mirror, to me, is far worse. A lifetime of memories washed away by the hands of senility. No one deserves that. Especially my mom. The figures in Ten Times a Day are representations of beings trapped in a state of cognitive decline—a prison from which there is no escape. The erosion of reality is represented through the abandoned spaces; the light signifies the blurred line between the real and the imagined. While the figures can maneuver through this deteriorating hell, they remain trapped within it. They roam until their candle burns out. Some will mourn (Death at a Great Distance), some will cower (Off Script), some will dance within lost memories (To Attempt Openness), and some will simply resign themselves to their fate (The Mourner of Parishad Days). The figures in each photograph were AI-generated using specific sets of prompts designed to achieve both the emotions I wanted to convey and the movements I envisioned. They were built around their environments and strategically placed to become part of them—less like figures inhabiting a space and more like manifestations of the space itself. Each environment was shot entirely on location. The figures were later added in post and then edited together as one image to make it feel as “natural” as possible.