Emily Persic Schwank – Indianapolis Art Center – Jan. 12, 2005 – 3 stars

Like one of her influences, French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, Schwank seems to connect with her subjects and some of their melancholy states while creating crisply executed images that are slightly too sentimental to be strict documentation. Helen Levitt’s images of New York street life seem poetically parallel to what Schwank captures in some of her pieces. “Galway Street Alley Belfast 2004,” for example, an RC black and white print, is perfectly composed though an unchoreographed stroke of luck. A little girl walks along a wall lined with plants and laundry hanging above, through which the sun radiates a white, not completely overexposed heat. Though not altogether a succinct series, her photographs contain elements of intrigue making many other photography offerings in the city appear a bit amateurish. There is still room for great growth and mucho potential from this artist who’s on the right road. Through Jan. 17, 2005; 317- 255-2464. – Mary Lee Pappas