October photo show entries juried

By Rex Dolby

Our first juror to arrive to jury photographs Sept. 15 was Lynn Whitney from Bowling Green State University. After greetings and a fresh cup of coffee, she began to get an overview of the task ahead. Juror Rob Ledwedge from Tiffin arrived a few minutes later.  After more introductions, the jurors were handed sheets with descriptions of each category and instructed not to accept any picture that did not match the category it was in.

The duo’s first task was to reject 131 pictures because of space limitations for the exhibit. As they approached the limit, it was very hard for them to eliminate good pictures. After finishing about 12:30 p.m., the pair declined taking a break for lunch and plunged into the task of selecting pictures for awards and honorable mentions. This effort took nearly two more hours. They then stayed longer to talk with members regarding their selection and offered suggestions on how to improve some of unaccepted prints.

When asked about her first impressions when she entered the gallery, Lynn responded that there was a lot of energy, a large support group that she did not expect, and the great variety of subject matter. Rob indicated that he was impressed with the large number of great photographs and how difficult it was going to be to get it down to the 170 for the show.

The hardest part of the job for Whitney was balancing their differing points of view of the image. Ledwedge said that he felt badly having to send so many good images to the basement.

On thoughts about the coming exhibit, Whitney liked the youth work and was amazed at the animal and bird pictures. Ledwedge predicted it would be a fantastic show with a huge variety of subjects, composition, ideas, and creativity.  He concluded that each one could win an award.

Lynn Whitney’s work has been exhibited in museums both internationally and here at home in such locations as Toledo, Cleveland, Findlay, Columbus and Watertown, Mass.

Rob Ledwedge, in addition to owning his own business, has been head photographer for Cedar Point and now for Tiffin College.  He has received Masterpiece and Judge’s Choice awards in professional competitions on the local, state, and regional levels. Besides his portrait work, he has done commercial, industrial, fine art, sports, theatrical, and architectural assignments as well.

There will be an opening reception and awards ceremony Saturday, October 6 from 7-9 and the photographs will be on exhibit Tuesday–Sunday 1–5 p.m. through November 2.

The Wassenberg Art Center’s hours during exhibits are: Tuesday through Sunday 1–5 p.m. and you may contact the art center at 419.238.6837, by email: info@wassenbergartcenter.org or via our website at: wassenbergartcenter.org. The Wassenberg Art Center is located at 643 South Washington Street in Van Wert.