Abstract photography on display as Arts Center’s featured exhibit

By Travis Fischer, tkfischer@charlescitypress.com

The Charles City Arts Center is ready to showcase March’s featured artist.

Shannon and Colleen Graham of S&C Design Studios braved Wednesdays blizzard to bring up a truck full of stylized photographs to be displayed for the month.

“I’m so excited just to look at their new work,” said Arts Center Director Emily Kiewel.

Based out of northern Bremer County, the Grahams have been working together on commercial photography for nearly three decades. In the last 15 years or so, they’ve stepped back from taking on corporate jobs in favor of more creative work.

“Elder commercial people like me tend to go to the art side,” said Shannon Graham.

Now, instead of taking photos of food and drinks for New York-based restaurants, the Grahams enjoy traveling to art festivals to show off and sell their works. Shannon also teaches film photography at Hawkeye College while Colleen is a published author of five books.

“I like it a whole lot better,” said Graham.

Bringing a collection of 52 photos to the Charles City Arts Center, photography is only the start of the artistic process. For Shannon, the darkroom is where the real work begins, utilizing different techniques and different chemicals that he mixes himself to turn conventional photographs into abstract art.

“They’re not straight prints,” said Graham. “They’ve all been heavily manipulated with historical processes.”

Interested in creating uniquely conceptual works, some of Graham’s photos have been so changed by different development techniques that he’s no longer sure what he had even taken the photo of. Other prints didn’t even involve a camera at all.

Shannon and Colleen Graham will be available Friday evening to go into great detail about the process when the Arts Center hosts its opening night reception at 5 p.m.