Past Exhibits

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When photography began its shift from chemical/metal-based processes to digital, Jeff Redman began to fear that manufacturers like Kodak and Ilford would stop making the common black and white papers he had used for decades. So, Jeff began to consider adopting one of the more “hand-made” processes that had been used in the early days of photography. After a bit of research he came to love the look of the few “carbon prints” he was able to see in museums and collections and began to seek information about the process.

A mutual friend introduced Jeff to Vaughn Hutchings, who kindly spend a day teaching him the basics of the carbon process. Under Vaughn’s tutelage Jeff made three very nice small prints that day. He went home and began trying to make carbon prints in his own environment. Jeff states that It would be almost four years before he made another “very nice small print”.

In Jeff’s ongoing efforts to make engaging, compelling, and beautiful images he has grown to love the “look” of carbon transfer prints. Their lush tonalities, their openness, and the surface “relief” they have that imparts a subtly three-dimensional “feel.”

Ann Mitchell is an artist who uses photography to explore space and place, actively en- gaged in creating worlds of poetic experience. After completing a BFA in Photography from Art Center College of Design, she worked as an award-winning advertising and edi- torial photographer for over a decade. She then returned to school to complete a MFA in Art from Claremont Graduate University. While there, in addition to producing her own work, she also curated several large art projects and has continued that commitment to community through the organizing of photo-related events. Shortly after graduation she joined the Art & Photography Department (now Visual and Media Arts) at Long Beach City College, where she has served as Chair and now as Digital Media Program Coordinator.

Ann Mitchell’s mother is a painter and her father was a film-maker. Over time, she’s come to realize that her photography...and her thoughts about the medium in general has been deeply influenced by both those artists. She’s always seen photography as an expressive medium that plays with the “real” but is not bound by it. She wants to create images that people can get lost in, that give the essence of a time or place in a way that speaks to the heart.

Typically, Gordon Reynolds does not preplan his photographs, nor does he work on projects, though he has several series that are constantly expanding. Mainly, he relies on luck, and a good bit of walking around. The subjects that interest him most are things from the man-made world, especially those that seem odd, mysterious, and/or timeless. While he has come to enjoy making photographs in the landscape it’s really the urban setting he most likes to explore.

These photographs were taken a week apart on two days in January, 2015. He has been to the area, Discovery Park, many times before and since, usually during the fall and winter months. On these two occasions the American River was low and flat with barely a ripple on the water, making a fine reflective surface. He felt like he was walking among finely preserved monuments from the past. They are hulking things, these pillars, and he wanted to capture a sense of serene ageless grandeur.

Michael Radin grew up in Los Angeles. As a teenager he became interested in photography. His first teacher was the family’s professional photographer. He went on to get his Master of Fine Arts from UCDavis in the 70s and studied with Robert Frank, Bob Arneson, Wayne Thiebaud, and Harvey Himelfarb. Other influences on Michael’s work include Marcel Duchamp, Man Ray, and Moholy-Nagy.

Michael’s process is to play with the camera until some idea intrigues him enough that he embarks on a project that may last for many years. His work reflects his fascination with images that bend reality and challenge the way we have traditionally looked at things.

His work has been shown in various galleries, both nationally and internationally, and it was published in the 100th Anniversary issue of Lenswork. Robert Frank included Michael in his 1996 book Thank You.

After a many years traveling the US as a programming consultant, Michael came back to Davis and is involved in the local art community.

Judith Monroe believes that we are often overstressed and too busy in our modern world, numbing our senses and making us feel disconnected. She sees the natural world we live in as an amazing place full of potential for refreshment and connection. As she goes through her daily routines, Judith endeavors to focus on the natural elements she encounters, whether taking a walk through nearby woods, walking her dogs in a local park, or stopping to view an insect. She collects natural objects, takes photographs and makes artworks to surround herself with the nature that energizes her. Judith finds solace and peace and reminders of her faith in nature. She says, “A breeze is God’s caress across my face, a leaf is a symbol for growth, a butterfly is a reminder of our potential for transformation into something better than we are today.”

Visual & Verbal is the theme of the 11th annual juried show, TWELVE. Visual & Verbal focuses on the relationship of words to pictures, specifically to photographs. These two realms, visual and verbal, come from different portions of our brains and obviously have different roles in communication. But they are partners. The exhibit Twelve: Visual & Verbal explores that complex and stimulating partnership. The photographic subject matter and methods are wide open, limitless. However, words should accompany photographic entries in one or both of the following ways:

1. The image contains whole or partial letters, words or numbers in any language as a design element. These textual elements might appear in the original photograph, such as a street signs, or may be added to the image, for example, handwritten or digitally applied text.
2. The title extends the meaning of the photograph.

Umbilicus is a creative response to motherhood and the transformative nature of the female body.  The spherical form that appears in my work references the womb, the first dark hollow we inhabit. The uterus can resist or allow potential candidates for occupancy. Once occupied, the long wait ensues, and then - the inevitable surrender. The cord will be cut, but the tether remains. There is a sense of biology in my work, where organic forms meet graphic elements.  These elements allude to the pull from the outside world - the man-made world, where straight lines come from.  Some images in the exhibition began as lumen prints, born in the sun. I enjoy the playfulness of objects on a wide array of papers and the reference to historic photographic methods. I shoot film and experiment quite a bit with alternative processes.  I like when outcomes cannot be predicted, and control is relinquished to the light.

In 2012 Liz Dahler traveled to Kenya and Tanzania, on an African safari and in 2013 to Namibia, Africa, to enable networking technology and teach elementary school teachers how technology can enhance and expand learning.  Both of these experiences left lasting impressions.  This collection of images provides a close up look into the Wild Animals of Africa. You are invited to take a few moments to engage with each photo and imagine the thoughts going through the minds of these beautiful creatures.  Is the animal a ‘watcher’ or ‘being watched?’ Sometimes it’s not what the photographer sees, but what is seen of the photographer. What is the emotion you observe? Do you see a human-like expression?  Genetic comparisons of baboons and humans identify us sharing 94% of our genes. With this photo collection, Liz’s goal is to uncover the common bond so together we can help protect endangered wildlife species.

Traveling was always part of her life, and when her husband’s occupation made it possible for them to live abroad, her travel photography opportunities expanded. Armed with her camera and a ready smile, Cecilia ventured out on her own to explore her new surroundings.

Since 2007, she has lived in Republic of Georgia, Egypt, Tajikistan, Macedonia, Ukraine, Moldova, Serbia, Kyrgyzstan, and in April 2019 a short return to North Macedonia (formerly known as Macedonia or the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)). In total, she has set foot on all continents and made photographs in more than 78 countries plus Transnistria, a “country” that no other country recognizes.

In summer 2018, I began asking friends, family and other participants to choose a few objects that they live with and that are special in some way: sentimental, frequently used or just interesting looking. I tried not to give them too much direction so that the participant had total control over the objects to be photographed. I then shot the objects in the room in which they exist. The backgrounds remain consistent in that the object is on a solid surface with a blank wall behind but they change in color and texture due to the style of the room.  The photographs are put into grids based on common characteristics of the owners or the objects themselves.

Emergent technologies give rise to novel art forms, yet the panoramic app installed on smart-phone cameras still awaits its artists. Responding to this conspicuous neglect, Fotographic Phictions proposes a new visual practice that bridges still photography and motion pictures. Peter Sutherland calls it cubist panoramics -- if by cubist you simply mean combining multiple perspectives in a single image.
In 2012, while exploring the panoramic app on his first smart-phone camera (a Samsung-SGH), Sutherland discovered a glitch in its Android operating system, that frees photography from the dominance of Renaissance perspective and the cardinal rule of panoramics -- not to shift the camera’s viewpoint, while you sweep it through the scene to be recorded. Doing so normally aborts the algorithm’s routine, whose early Samsung/Android version divided the sweep into eight separate stills, then stitched them into a seamless panorama.