World Photography Day: Celebrating photography at Stamps
August 19 is World Photography Day! To celebrate, we’re shining a spotlight on our student, faculty, and alumni photographers. Check out some of the amazing photographic work from the Stamps community.
Victor Luis Garcia: “What I Could’ve Been”
Featured in the 2023 Undergraduate Juried Exhibition, “What I Could’ve Been” by Victor Luis Garcia explores Garcia’s hometown in Capped Guerrero, Mexico.
“I am the living dream mis abuelos had when they left their lives behind and crossed the border, hoping for anything better,” says Garcia in an artist statement. “From a third-grade dropout to an upperclassman in college, my family started off with nothing, and I have the power to give them everything.”
Idris Young: “The Only Grace They Could Have Is The Grace They Could Imagine”
Three photographs from student Idris Young were featured in the 2023 Undergraduate Juried Exhibition. The series was inspired by Toni Morrison’s “Beloved,” and “the not always visible yet violent legacy of slavery and how grief itself lingers.”
“In these photographs, I aim to compositionally depict this interaction between the Black body and the landscape, specifically water,” says Young in an artist statement.
Andrea Ziemkowski: “Misster Monster’s Movie Emporium”
Featured in the 2023 Stamps School Senior Exhibition, Andrea Ziemkowski’s “Misster Monster’s Movie Emporium,” is a series of photographs that explores the masculine and feminine archetypes seen throughout Hollywood’s history.
“Hypermasculine films shaped my sense of adventure, and the female archetypes of horror films taught me the power of feminine rage,” says Ziemkowski in an artist statement. “Some portraits portray key components of these archetypes like the journey of ‘The Mobman’ anti-hero or the masculine and romantic history of ‘The Cowboy.’”
Leigh Cohen: “Is Chivalry Dead? Or is it Just Sleeping?”
Alum Leigh Cohen’s BFA thesis project is an ode to the hopeless romantics of modern-day romance. Through photography and editorial design, Cohen used 1950s aesthetics and film culture to redefine chivalry.
“The text and photography expose the ways that technology and other modern advancements have influenced the way we seek and sustain romance in unprecedented ways,” says Cohen in an artist statement.
Ghida Hammoud: “Coming of Age”
Ghida Hammoud’s photograph, “Coming of Age,” was featured in the 2022 Undergraduate Juried Exhibition.
“Coming of age, what can we see? Although to our eyes it is imaginably destined, we don’t know the road and how it left them. Follow the aging of beauty and complexity through the piece by following the characters as they lead out to the swishing ocean of gone souls,” says Hammoud in an artist statement.
Joanne Leonard: “Sonia”
Distinguished University Professor Emerita Joanne Leonard’s photograph, “Sonia,” (via San Francisco Museum of Modern Art) is one of Leonard’s works of simple capturing of women’s lives. Her intimate documentary approach is infused with layers of feminism and political commentary.
“The women’s realm might not have seemed like art at all, and those family photographs might have just seemed like snapshots,” Leonard said.“But in the context of the political climate, and emerging context of feminism, it was important to emphasize women’s worlds and women’s work.”
Craig Varjabedian: “Welcome to New Mexico”
“Welcome to New Mexico,” photographed by alum Craig Varjabedian (BFA ‘79) is featured in the award-winning book “Landscape Dreams, a New Mexico Portrait.” Varjabedian’s photographs, made over the nearly three decades that he has lived and worked in New Mexico, range over all the image-making forms — landscape, portrait, and still life — to offer a remarkably complete, varied, and original portrait of what many call the “Land of Enchantment.”
Varjabedian, winner of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage’s Outstanding Photography Book in 2010, is a fine art photographer and instructor.
Amy Davis: “Assimilation”
Lecturer II Amy Davis’ ongoing photography and videography endeavor, “Assimilation,” is a poignant exploration of the complex and multifaceted nature of identity, particularly in the context of the immigrant experience in America.
“Inspired by my personal relationship with my husband, this project delves deep into the inner turmoil and emotional struggles of those who have relocated to the United States, as they navigate the delicate balance between preserving their cultural roots and adapting to their newfound American lifestyle,” Davis writes.