SCOTT GAY
It took me a long time to find my subject matter as a photographer. There were always hints (sidetracks, distractions, many experiments) along the way in my course of study, but the landscape always was the place I enjoyed shooting and printing. It didn’t seem like work. It was pleasurable. It was my “zen” moment.
I think it is because I am always looking at the land. I am not a farmer; I didn’t grow up on a farm. I grew up in a subdivision behind a golf course in North Liberty (with a farm across the street). I have always seen the curves, lines, and colors (even in black & white) of the land. It is beautiful to me and I want others to see what I see. I do worry about the places that have disappeared, or some might call urbanized, from time to time.
Every time I have ventured from the landscape, I am unsatisfied with my images and my feelings about the shoot. Now I find myself looking for a landscape everytime I shoot, even if it is a vacation setting or family outing. I wait for the “people” to move out of the frame. I have waited 10 minutes at Balancing Rock in the Garden of the Gods to get the shot I wanted for our vacation memories. When I made the crossover from large format black & white gelatin silver prints to digital DSLR and pigment inkjet prints (oh, let’s not forget Color), I thought my subject matter might change. It has not.
Bio: Scott is a graduate of Kirkwood Community College. He earned his BA from Coe College in Art and Education. His MA is from University of Northern Iowa in Education with an emphasis on Professional Development. Scott has been in the classroom teaching at all grade levels since 1997. He started teaching at Kirkwood in 2008.
I think it is because I am always looking at the land. I am not a farmer; I didn’t grow up on a farm. I grew up in a subdivision behind a golf course in North Liberty (with a farm across the street). I have always seen the curves, lines, and colors (even in black & white) of the land. It is beautiful to me and I want others to see what I see. I do worry about the places that have disappeared, or some might call urbanized, from time to time.
Every time I have ventured from the landscape, I am unsatisfied with my images and my feelings about the shoot. Now I find myself looking for a landscape everytime I shoot, even if it is a vacation setting or family outing. I wait for the “people” to move out of the frame. I have waited 10 minutes at Balancing Rock in the Garden of the Gods to get the shot I wanted for our vacation memories. When I made the crossover from large format black & white gelatin silver prints to digital DSLR and pigment inkjet prints (oh, let’s not forget Color), I thought my subject matter might change. It has not.
Bio: Scott is a graduate of Kirkwood Community College. He earned his BA from Coe College in Art and Education. His MA is from University of Northern Iowa in Education with an emphasis on Professional Development. Scott has been in the classroom teaching at all grade levels since 1997. He started teaching at Kirkwood in 2008.