The artistic lenses of more than fifteen Fairfield students involved in the University’s Sophomore Residential College are bringing personal identity, unseen places, and other fascinating subjects into focus with a new digital photography exhibition titled “FORM/ IDEA/ EXPLORATION.” The eclectic showcase will be on display in Loyola Hall’s Lukacs and Experimental Space Galleries through February 6, 2019, when it will end with a closing reception from 5–7 p.m.

Each collection on display in the galleries features original photographs taken by students enrolled in Visual and Performing Arts Instructor Cheryl Yun’s digital photography class, which was offered last fall through the University’s Sophomore Residential College. By integrating the creative goals of an artist with the Residential College’s objective to answer the questions “Who am I?” “Whose am I?” and “Who I am called to be?,” the course encourages students to explore contemporary approaches to photography while examining the many ways in which a photograph “speaks” to its viewers. 

“The gallery features students’ final projects, which explore everything from abandoned spaces in their hometown to unseen places in everyday life, and hair in relation to identity,” Yun explained. “The photographs are hung in one long row throughout the gallery and include excerpts from the artists’ statements to give viewers a more in-depth understanding of their work.”

For her final project, Haley Norton ‘21 photographed various elements of nature as seen through different windows across campus. “I used the windows to represent the distance we have created between ourselves and nature, as we do not take care of the environment nearly as much as we should,” she explained. “The windows almost create a wall or border that represent our separation from nature.”

Utilizing a completely different approach, Gabriel Tapia ‘21 used her photography skills to showcase the subtle ways in which people do not always adhere to typical gender norms. By capturing unique objects and facial expressions on film, she “invites viewers to assess the emotions that each of these images evoke” and challenges them to “inspect what elements of their own life might be influenced by gender norms.”

Tapia, Norton, and the rest of their class’ gallery of work is available for viewing Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. and Wednesday from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. on the ground floor of Loyola Hall. Both the exhibition and the closing reception are free and open to the public.