A Closer Look at “Rock. Water. Air.”

On January 31, 2018 a photograph exhibition opened at the Bogigian and Cooley Galleries at Wilson College. The exhibition, titled “Rock. Water. Air”, is made up of photographs by Associate Professor of Fine Arts, R.K. Dickson.

The exhibition is made up of 38 black and white photographs, 24 in the Bogigian Gallery, found in Lortz and 14 in the Cooley Gallery on the third floor of the John Stewart Memorial Library. The photographs convey a message beyond the obvious image displayed within each of them.

“The image may be of rocks, water, or clouds, but is about my feelings as I was making the photograph,” stated Professor Dickson in his artist statement.

There are so many components, steps, and time that went into “Rock. Water. Air.” Taking and developing the pictures can be time consuming. Professor Dickson explained that developing a single picture can take from a few minutes to a whole day.

Professor Dickson truly enjoys the whole process of photography. “I enjoy the interaction with the pictures, I am in love with the process,” he stated “Making an image is a blast.”

Once the photographs are developed and framed, another decision has to be made; the order in which the images are displayed. Professor Dickson explained the order chosen for “Rock. Water. Air.”, and any of his exhibitions, allows the photographs to talk to each other. He compared this to the way a music album flows from one song to the next.

“Rock. Water. Air.” will remain open until March 10, 2018. Everyone is invited to stop and interact with the photographs on display. “I truly enjoy watching people interact with my images,” explained Professor Dickson. In the future, Professor Dickson hopes to take parts of this exhibition on the road.