Artist Statement

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turmoil

noun   |   tur moil   |   \’ter-,mòi(-e)l\ : a state or condition of extreme confusion, agitation, or commotion

During the Winter 2017 quarter, I offered a Special Topics class, Exploring Analog Photography. This class was an exploration of film-based image-making that allowed for both technical and conceptual experimentation. Before the class started for the quarter, the students were offered the Commonwealth Gallery for an exhibition of work produced during the class. Deciding that the exhibition would be stronger if it revolved around a common theme, the class set out to find one. I gave the idea of “turmoil” as an example, and somehow it stuck.
At first, defining turmoil visually proved to be an interesting problem. Students struggled looking for answers to an unasked question. Should the images be personal? Societal? Straightforward? Conceptual? The different approaches all had merit, and the students all produced a body of work regarding their particular definition. The work in this exhibition represents a fraction of the work produced.

Larry Gawel Photography Instructor