Photo by Amanda Flowers

As I mentioned in a recent post, I’ve been writing a lot of art reviews lately. ArtNowNashville is a new online journal that asked me to take a trip to Clarksville, TN to take a look at a show by student photographers from Austin Peay State University. I cranked up The Monkees and headed north…

The Framemaker frame shop and gallery in Clarksville is currently offering passersby a chance to peer into the future of Middle Tennessee’s art scene and catch a glimpse of what’s to come from a group of five young photographers at Austin Peay State University. The Framemaker hosts an annual show of student photos and this year’s exhibit – “Foresight” – finds Rian Barger, Amanda Flowers, Jon Chisholm, Kathryn Griffin, and Synthia Clark addressing both visual and psychological themes.

Rian Barger’s contribution to the show includes several close-ups of eyeballs staring into the lens of the camera. The artist culled her collection from “over a thousand photos of eyes.” Her five photos make a statement about the voyeurism that is intrinsic to photography while commenting on the gaze of the viewer. Synthia Clark’s photo montages respond to the Paul Lawrence Dunbar poem “We Wear the Mask,” juxtaposing photos of professional performers alongside Facebook pics of her friends “performing” for the camera.

More after this jump across The Great Abyss…

Joe Nolan <3