Gore Galleries Hosts British Connection Photographs

Photo by Zach Schurch

Buckingham Palace, Piccadilly Circus, Trafalgar Square and kayaking along the Thames are just a few of the many attractions in London, the royal city that will host the 2012 Olympics.

With so many extraordinary sites to shoot in London plus magnificent landscapes not very far away throughout England, Scotland and Wales, a group of Mississippi College professors and students made good use of their cameras last spring.

Their beautiful photographs are on display at the Student Art Gallery of the Samuel Marshall Gore Galleries through September 2. An opening reception for the “British Connection” show is set for August 25 from 6-8 p.m. and the public is invited.

It’s one in a series of must-see exhibits at the Gore Galleries on the Clinton campus this fall.

The British Connection show is the result of the London Semester 2011 course titled “design applications” taught by MC Art Department Chairman Randy Miley.

“The course was designed to teach students how to effectively design, compose and communicate through digital photography,” Miley says. “In the course, we learned basic design elements and principles as well as visual tools for establishing good compositions.”

MC students were handed photography assignments and turned in an average of ten images each week.

“Subject matter was the least of our worries,” Miley said. “Our setting changed from the congested city to the monumental snow covered mountains of Glencoe, Scotland,” he said. “It was a most thrilling adventure. As an artist and teacher, it was most exciting to watch the class use their cameras as an extension of their artistic eyes.”

The photographers included professors Miley and Tommy L. Leavelle of the Mississippi College Mathematics Department. Nine MC students also snapped pictures on the journey. They are: Matthew Brown, Jasmine N. Hammond, Lauren Hester, Jarvis Holloway, Haley J. Houghton, Ashley E. Howard, Austin L. Moore, Alison E. Newman and Zachary W. Schurch.

“I really feel like the London semester was a big step for me coming from a small town of Holly Springs,” said Jarvis Holloway, 23, an MC senior. “It was an opportunity to show my art.”

His favorite photo? It would have to be his panoramic view of Big Ben that the former MC Choctaws outside linebacker and business administration major captured at night. For Holloway, another favorite would be his photos of waterfalls of the Highlands in Scotland.

His first trip abroad on MC’s London Semester was a fabulous experience “in an amazing country,” says Zachary Schurch, a 21-year-old junior from Starkville. He especially enjoyed taking photos of the Lake District scenery in England. His pictures were shot on a hillside overlooking a valley of farms.

“This was the first time to seriously get into photography,” says Schurch, a biology/pre-med major and future dental student. “It’s something I can use for the rest of my life.”

Hester’s work in England included taking photos of the 11 class members in a studio setting at a London hotel. Her photos are used to illustrate the exhibit’s invitations.

Jolly is encouraging students, faculty, staff and others around the Jackson area to attend the August 25 reception and meet the London Semester photographers.

For more information, including a slide show of the MC group’s British trip, visit the website at www.mclondon.phanfare.com Summer hours at the Gore Galleries are Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. and Friday from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.