The Awards Collective was created to feature the works of artist who have received a Juror’s Award or Director’s Award in ASG’s Online exhibitions.  Stephanie Duprie Routh’s  image Phoenix #33: Gaga Floating in the Metaverse received the Juror’s Award in the open | unmoored exhibition juried by Debra Klomp Ching.  Stephanie’s exhibition Phoenix Rising was featured from March 1 to March 31, 2025 and is discussed in our GalleryTalk with Stephanie.

Artist Statement

Phoenix Rising metaphorically illustrates the many transformations a woman may go through in her lifetime as she adapts to roles both expected of and desired by her. At a young age, I intuitively learned to re-invent myself. Expectations of others and my own beliefs shaped the person I am today. As I travel through different phases of my life, I morph into what is needed. I can be a provider, artist, lover, caretaker, —almost sub-consciously.

For the project Phoenix Rising, I create an image and then intervene with the physicality of the print. I re-photograph the new incarnation. This new re-seeing magnifies the underlying principle found in all my creative endeavors: Same, but different. The images are made all over the world. The initial image, representing the past carried forward, travels elsewhere to represent our journey in life. The print is modified as a testament to women’s adaptability. The rephotographed image is not a replicate but a new work with a different narrative. It may represent a memory, a current state of being, or a wish for the future. The altered second image, representing the expanded self, is left where photographed. Maybe it is found and kept or perhaps discarded. This is a metaphorical bridge illustrating real-life experiences. The undetermined endpoint of the images relates to the many unknown versions I may become of myself. The destination is irrelevant; rather the occurring transformation is the primary focus. This multi-faceted project showcases the re-shaping of women’s personalities as a journey.

Regardless of my path or the role I embody, the bedrock of my personality remains constant: I am the same but an altered version of myself. I carry my past into the present and continually expand who I am. Using other women as stand-ins for myself, the images are phoenixes just like all women are the epitome of the mother of re-invention. We rise, burn to ash, reinvent, rise again, and repeat.

Stephanie Duprie Routh
March, 2025

Bio

Stephanie Duprie Routh, based in Austin, Texas, is an artist who uses photography for narrative storytelling and conceptual art. Her personal work explores ideas of womanhood, the essence of place, and the transitory states of simply being human. As an artist, she uses the visual language of photography to tell stories through layers and interventions, creating new ways of seeing and considering self.

Routh’s award-winning work has been exhibited in the United States, Japan, Italy, Spain, and India, both in galleries and juried shows. She has been published by the RAW Magazine, FRAMES Magazine, PDN Magazine, National Geographic Traveler, Dodho Magazine, The Austin Chronicle, and by several independent photo reviews. She sits on discussion panels and has had interviews by art curators. Her monograph Where the Ocean Drinks the Sky has sold out two editions and is found in hotel rooms. Routh’s second book Daydream in Memories of Youth debuted in 2024 is also installed in hotels.

Her work is held in the permanent collections of The Wittliff Collections, CENTER Image Library and Archive, Texas A&M University, Concordia University, Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, The Loren at Lady Bird Lake, and with private collectors. Routh’s work has been recognized by many organizations including awards via Paris Photo Prize, Julia Margaret Cameron Awards, IPA Awards and LensCulture. In 2024, she was nominated to apply for a Leica Oskar Barnack Award.

She travels worldwide for assignments, commissions, and personal projects.

website: stephanieduprierouth.com
instagram: @stephanieduprierouth

link to online exhibiton