Student photos interpret architecture vs. nature

Western Washington University art professor Garth Amundson and students in his Art 390: Intermediate Black and White Photography class will be holding an exhibition, “Architecture vs. Nature: The 4X5 View Camera,” which will feature twenty 40-by-50-inch photographs the students created with a 4-by-5-view camera. The exhibition opened April 16 in the foyer of the Science Mathematics and Technology Education building and will run until May 7. 

The class project is based on the notion that urban encroachment, over-development, and all forms of architecture sometimes complement the landscape in which they are hosted and other times create a jarring and brutal juxtaposition and interruption. Students worked in groups of three to four to create these striking large-format images, utilizing light, composition, and the movements of the 4-by-5-view camera. Having read Deborah Bright’s article about concepts surrounding nature and landscape photography, “Of Mother Nature and Marlboro Men,” the students set out to interpret architecture vs. nature.

Students participating in the project are Corinn Holberg of Stanwood; Ashley Garrels of Renton; Chloe Malmquest of Whitefish, Mont.; Jenaya Christafir of Spokane; Wilson Chan of Issaquah; Erick Rufon of Bremerton; Rachel Wooldridge of Vancouver, Wash.; Jeana Moody of Pullman; Katie Hudak of Bozeman, Mont.; Tim Seguin of Wenatchee; Van Vu of Olympia; Sarah Thompson of Burien; Samantha O’Brochta of Freeland; Kaitlin Stevens of Seattle; April Hayden of Issaquah; Jasmine Wilhelm of Boise, Idaho; Hannah Warren of Astoria, Ore.; Frankie Krupa-Vahdani of Seattle; Robin Jones of Everett; and Jenna Knell of Bainbridge Island.

The WWU Photography concentration website can be found at http://www.wwu.edu/artphotography.

For more information about the exhibition, contact Garth Amundson at (360) 650-3436 or garth.amundson@wwu.edu.