Photo gallery showcases talent, progress in students

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Tony Gojilde / The Advocate

Art major Shienna Nang looks at Tony Tamayo’s photograph at Eddie Rhodes Gallery in the Art Building on Nov. 2.

By Louis Cano, Assistant Photo-Editor

The Eddie Rhodes gallery is known for hosting professional artists, but currently, photography students have been given the opportunity to display their photos outside of the classroom — for the campus community to enjoy.

Varied photos expressing the diverse perspectives of student-photographers can be seen in the Eddie Rhodes Gallery until the end of the fall semester.

“Most shows run for six weeks but this show got extended because a painting gallery that was supposed to be held after this show was pushed to next semester due to time management and expenses,” Fine and Media Arts professor Dana Davis said

The reason behind Davis putting this gallery together was to showcase what the students have been working on, give them some experience on gallery shows and possibly have some employment doors open for the students.

The photos aim to inspire people who’ve never picked up a camera or done anything artsy, to join Davis’ photography class.

Upon walking into the gallery visitors will notice the diversity in everyone’s work.

Works range from photos of flowers/plants and portraits to shots of the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge.

Every student has a unique way of expressing themselves through a camera lens.

Davis mentioned that every student that took part of the gallery is at a different class level in his photography course.

It’s hard to tell to be quite honest, everyone seems to be very advanced level, he said.

Advertising major Tony Tamayo is one of the students who was a part of the photo gallery. He has seven of his photos displayed and has a very distinct style.

Tamayo is a self-taught photographer who decided to get into photography because it gave him a sense of purpose.

“Before I got into photography, I used to do a lot of Photoshop and graphic design. I used to manipulate photos a lot before I could manipulate my own photos,” Tamayo said

Tamayo was able to use his knowledge of graphic design and Photoshop to apply to his photography.

Tamayo has a photo of the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge that makes Richmond look like Manhattan.

While other students put their work in frames, he printed his work out on metal which really complimented his style.

“He could walk out of here right into a number of jobs. He’ll like pick out colors and do stuff I don’t even know how to do,” Davis said.

Art major Lisa Lacabanne is another student who got to showcase her work.

She decided to get some of her older work and bring it back to life by retouching it since it was originally produced on film.

Manually processing film is one of the most stressful and frustrating things a photographer has to face but that didn’t stop her from displaying her work.

Lacabanne talked about how much she appreciates the photography class for providing her and other students with supplies so they can strive in their work.

“They give you a lot of freedom to do what you can and cater everyone,” Lacabanne said.

Not only did the students participate by showing their work, they also helped Davis set up and organize the gallery.

Before the gallery opened, they set the photos on the floor to help them come up with a fun way to present them.

“Most people think you just a nail them on the wall, you want to keep a rhythm,” Davis said.

This is one of the first galleries where students have been really excited to show off their work to the public.

Students have even asked for the gallery to stay open on the weekends or late on weekdays so that their friends and family could take a look at their work.

“I love it, I go home happy. I’m proud of them,” Davis said.

Visitors can take a peek at the photo gallery in the Art Building which will be open until the 15th of December.