Donya Rouzbehi
Staff Writer
The “Light, Shadow and Legacy” exhibit opened earlier this month, with a reception Oct. 2, in the Irene Carlson Gallery of Photography in Miller Hall.
This show featured the works of the University’s photo department alumni across generations.
The photos captured a wide range of subjects and styles, lightness to darkness.
The photographers included Amanda Torres, Chris Rogers, Frank Perez, Casi Martinez, Kim Toth, Ethan Bermudez, Raffi Zinzalian, Nanor Zinzalian and Maxwell Sierra.
Fred Brashear, visiting professor of photography at the University and show curator, selected the photographs to highlight each photographer’s unique approach style.
“They sent me some work, I curated it, and then I chose the pieces that I felt fit best into the show and represented them,” Brashear said.
Martinez’s works included photos that tell the story of her grandparents’ travels. The photos are of metal cyanotypes that Martinez created which visually represents their story.
Bermudez, who expanded his creative path from photography to directing a music video for Foreverproof by Comfort Club, included in his works a triptych of the hand-built set for the music video. The picture shows the set, an all white room which gets torn apart to reveal a red interior underneath. Bermudez said this piece was inspired by the Jim Carrey film “The Truman Show.”
“We worked on this idea doing a ‘Truman Show’-esque idea where he can see it expose the set for being kind of what it is,” Bermudez said. “So we got some stills from here with him realizing the rippage and then the aftermath of the whole exposure of the set.”
Sierra described his work as representative of political change and consumer culture.
Specifically, his photo featured an abandoned shopping cart in a field of grass.
“I like the shopping cart,” said freshman Ella Zazueta, who attended the reception. “It has a surrealism vibe.”
Toth, who currently teaches photography at Citrus College, showed a close-up shot of a flower.
Raffi Zinzalian’s piece was a headshot of Hagop Achkarian, an Armenian genocide survivor, to tell the story of pain and resilience passed down generations of Armenians.
Nanor Zinzalian, who is Raffi’s daughter, has pursued photography as her full-time career since graduating from the University. For her business, Enzie Photo, she photographs brands, products and family portraits.
Nanor Zinzalian’s piece is a brand shoot for Reset Hair, showing a candid close-up of a woman brushing her hair. She photographed her piece at her studio in Glendale, California.
“I think a lot of brand work I photograph for, I try to do a lifestyle approach,” Nanor Zinzalian said. “I find it just way more comfortable for me to photograph products in that setting because it feels more organic.”
Nanor Zinzalian had a few words for those looking into professional photography.
“For people who want to start photographing, say yes to many things and experiment,” Zinzalian said. “Once you find yourself getting more work, set more boundaries with what you think you feel comfortable with.”
The Irene Carlson Gallery, on the first floor of Miller Hall is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The “Light, Shadow and Legacy” exhibit runs through Dec. 12.
Donya Rouzbehi can be reached at donya.rouzbehi@laverne.edu.
Donya Rouzbehi is a senior journalism major with a concentration in print/online journalism, and staff photographer for the Campus Times and La Verne Magazine. She has previously served as sports editor and a staff writer for the Campus Times, and is co-editor-in-chief of La Verne Magazine. Her other writing can be found at trillmag.com/author/donya-rouzbehi
Mia Byington is a senior photography major with a minor in marketing. She is a staff photographer for the Campus Times and La Verne Magazine.
