Society for Photographic Education

2024 Member Exhibition

Revitalize!

October 25-26, 2024

National Park College

Student Commons | Hot Springs, AR

JUROR STATEMENT

I’d like to thank the Society of Photographic Education for inviting me to juror this years exhibition. As an artist, preparator, designer and curator, much of my personal and professional life has been focused on placing art in an environment that highlights the artworks’ various visual elements as strongly as possible while also working to create conversations between artworks that might not be readily discernible from first glance from other components, like history, context, or intention. The presentation of not just the artworks themselves, but also the surroundings they are viewed in can create a situation between the artist and viewer, that if handled properly, serve to strengthen the experience by enticing the viewer to take a longer look, and to engage the work more introspectively, rather than to pass by, disconnected - can be quite the challenge, indeed.

However, when working as a Juror, choosing exhibition selections from a list of vastly different artists, working in vastly different ways, is perhaps one of the most challenging aspects of curation, and one that is so often bittersweet, since you only have so much context to the artwork. You have to rely even more on your instincts of composition, balance, and technique, and treat the image more like an impromptu introduction of someone you meet for the first time as you attempt to learn the language each work “speaks”. It can be extremely exciting, but ultimately, there may be something lost in translation.

There were so many great pieces to select from, that it was upsetting to not include them all, but ultimately my selections I felt had a soothing combination of intrigue, composition, and mystery, while also having strong use of form, color, and space, that kept me returning. I’d like to thank each artist for contributing their work and encourage you to continue to excel at what you do. Congratulations to everyone!

Kevin Haynie

Chris Ireland

Corner Sunset

Juror's Award

This work has a great combination of the familiar and the unknown. The juxtaposition of such familiar and disarming imagery of floral wallpaper and bedroom windows paired with a seemingly infinite void creates a tug-of-war between comfort and fear.

Robin Germany
Llano Three

Juror's Award

This work demonstrates the beauty in everyday scenery, yet simultaneously becomes the set of a dark fantasy play through the use of color and light and shadow. This duality created a sense of intrigue that guided a sense of exploration.

Andy Mattern
Ghost 100

Amanda Breitbach
Christmas Eve Oil Spill

Ariya Aladjem Wolf
Gifts to Ghost

Bruno Poco
Three Of My Neighbors Have Disappeared

Carol Record
Prometheus's Gift

Colin Knight
Untitled

Sierra Greenslade
Girl Power

Vahid Valikhani
TBD1

Deborah Lillie
Dyers Bay Study No. 12

Dillon Bryant
The Knife

DM Witman
eor no. 21

Ginger Russell
My Mother's Name was Snake

Jared Ragland
The Farm

Joshua Mokry
Signal

Joshua Mokry
Vibration

Lauren Allen
Lucerna

Leila S Saidane
State Trooper

Mark Chen
Trilobite at Gorman Falls

Rachel Boillot
Mine 18

Rebecca Drolen
Figure 006 Move

Kevin Haynie

JUROR

Kevin Haynie is the Curator of Collections & Exhibitions at the Arts and Science Center for Southeast Arkansas. Haynie was previously the head of installation at The Momentary in Bentonville, Arkansas and the senior preparator at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. He was born in El Dorado, and earned his BFA in Studio Art at Henderson State University. His art background includes working extensively with both traditional media and non-traditional formats, including digital, auditory, animation, and interactive works. As curator at the Arts and Science Center for Southeast Arkansas, Haynie has developed an artist residency program, six gallery spaces, and a store that features work from artists across Arkansas.