Lucy Stone, News Editor
Photography exhibition, “Faces and Spaces,” took place at the Oglethorpe Gallery in downtown Savannah this weekend from April 21 through 23. Graduating SCAD students, Laura Beckerdite and Rob Crossno, showcased their senior portfolios at the gallery.
Photography major Laura Beckerdite took part in the ‘Faces’ aspect of the art show. Her pieces were primarily colorful portraits with added movement. “I’m a commercial photographer but I really love minimalistic stuff with a bold punch to it,” Beckerdite said.
Her favorite piece is the “double faces,” she said, titled “Split Personality.” The featured portrait on flyers advertising the event, “Split Personality” highlights the color blue in the background and shirts of the model.
Blue was a common color in several of Beckerdite’s pieces that featured either a blue sky, blue clothing or blue background. “No one uses color quite to the same magnitude that Rob and I do,” she said, explaining why she and Crossno combined their exhibition at the Oglethorpe Gallery.
Also a photography major at SCAD, Rob Crossno creates sets from scratch. His photos were all taken in his dorm rooms, where he would spend a full day or two building the set, creating the space and sculptures that went into it.
“They’re all life-sized,” Crossno explained. “It’s 7×8’ on the back wall 7×4’ on the sides and bottom, including the ceiling.” Crossno would paint, create sculptures and hang objects from the ceiling.
“I think what’s unique is that they’re multi-faceted,” Crossno said. “It’s able to be seen as photographs or an actual set in a museum.” He elaborated on his creative process which he drew from his subconscious.
“These works are a visual representation of my subconscious, brought about through means of the physical reality around me… Each room represents a peek into a thought, with the clear points of an ineffable concept depicted as objects with meaning in our reality. In this whimsical limbo, these ideas for a surrealist reality where we can engage with what lurks beneath the surface of our everyday existence.”
Crossno’s favorite pieces included his pink and red themed rooms. The pink room, titled “Temptation Room,” features flowery wallpaper on the back wall with a pink bust on a stand. Pink arrows hanging from the ceiling shoot towards the right, one hitting the center of a pink apple.
“Eternity Room” is a deep red space that shows a gun pointing towards the target of a clock on the chest of a mannequin. An angelic figure hangs above the scene.
“Face and Spaces” is one of the many exhibitions that the Oglethorpe Gallery hosts. For
more information on future events, please view their website at www.oglethorpegallery.com
