Photojournalism exhibit documents the Southern political climate

Photo Courtesy of Laura Mulder 

Written by Patrick Guilford

Thursday, Nov. 17, marked the opening of the SCAD photojournalism exhibition at Cup to Cup Café. Students exhibited their final photos, summarizing emotions and tensions surrounding this year’s election in the South.

For a class headed by photography professor, Rebecca Nolan, six students went out to various events hosted by both political parties and documented their findings.

As Sarah Noga, one of the students, explained: “You spot a new event, get the photos, like a unique photo that says something different than what you may see normally and then coming back from that.”

The result is a glimpse of the political climate within the South. “There’s a lot of Southern aspects to this,” said Noga. Though there’s a running motif throughout the show, each of the photographers captured their own unique view on the situation.

“I try to take a step back and give an outsider’s perspective and make it look like I’m not there.” said photographer, Laura Maulder. “Kind of a voyeuristic kind of view,” she added.

Contrast this to the up-close style of Yao Wang’s photos, presenting both parties within Savannah. “I tried to focus on both sides. The whole process is very important but so are the local people,” said Wang.

As for how SCAD has helped them, the photographers accredited the college for its enthusiastic critiques and room for experimentation within their own styles.

As Wang puts it, “The most important thing about SCAD is that SCAD is very open. Open to different opinions, different ideas and different perspectives.”

The pieces were exhibited at Cup to Cup Café from Nov. 17-20.

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