By Tracie Tuttle–A recent art display, titled “It’s Not All Black and White,” at the HJF Learning Center featured portrait photography by Rae Clinkenbeard and Makaelyn Glienke which forces viewers to look beyond what they see.
The show featured 28 contrasting photos that allowed the photographers to get out of their comfort zones and explore new techniques, ranging from extremely dark backgrounds that focused on the silhouette of the model to bold, colorful portraits.
Clinkenbeard, a junior arts administration and photography major, said that this show allowed her to gain experience in working with models and playing with different kinds of light sources. In her previous work, she focused on taking very bright and colorful photos of landscapes, animals, grass– almost everything nature related. “Working in a studio with people is different. I don’t have to pose nature and the models talk back,” said Clinkenbeard when asked about her experience taking these photos. She went on to say that she was inspired by the 17th Century Dutch painter Rembrandt, who is known for depicting very deliberate and intense lighting in his paintings.
Glienke, a junior advertising and photography major, was inspired by photographer John Sams, who utilizes interesting poses and bold, monochromatic color choices in most of his photography. “When I started taking photos, I stayed mainly with sports and nature as my subjects. Lately I’ve been focusing on more studio portraits and learning to interact with models.” Glienke said that she wanted to experiment with “different from the norm” poses; in one photo the model can be seen holding a shoe to her ear, like a phone.
Overall, the photographers wanted to remind the viewers that photography is more than just superficial appearances.
Don’t forget to check out the upcoming Faculty Art Show in the HJF Learning Center!
You can check out more of Rae’s work HERE and Makaelyn’s work HERE.
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