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Wallace & Rinne Photos on Exhibit

Visitors to a photography exhibit which hangs through June 22 will see at least one photo that will never be captured the same way again.

The exhibit by Dr. Ray Wallace and Dr. Henry Rinne, both of Fort Smith, is titled "The River Valley: People and Places – As Seen through the Camera's Eye" and is on display at the Center for Art and Education, 104 N. 13th St. in Van Buren.

Wallace, provost and senior vice chancellor at the University of Arkansas - Fort Smith, said his photo of a landscape was shot in a pasture off Massard Road and is a one-of-a-kind effort.

"I am pleased with the landscape," he said. "I used a technique known as High Dynamic Range, which sometimes can be over the top, as is the case in my photo. But I like the feeling it conveys about clouds and flowers which I passed every day."

Wallace said he finally got out of his truck, strode into the field and captured the image he wanted.

"The next day, a farmer cut all the flowers and grass away, and so the image will never be repeated," he said. "I also have a pretty decent Bass Reeves photograph, if I do say so myself."

Wallace's 26 photos are displayed along with 26 done by Rinne, dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. The two worked on the exhibit for about 10 months, talking about what the River Valley means to both of them. They didn't really look at each other's photographs, but talked about the conceptual messages they wanted to convey.

"I think people will be interested in seeing two artists' different perspectives on the same, albeit broad, topic," said Wallace. "People will see areas of this region they are familiar with and others they did not know existed, but all with a slightly different take."

Rinne agreed, pointing to some of the known areas in the region that he has photographed.

"My work represents a variety of subjects, focusing on nature, the landscape, and how humans insert themselves into the landscape," said Rinne. "I find the long horizontal format of the panorama to be of particular interest and generally look for subjects that lend themselves to this type of presentation."

He said two panoramas – one of the Arkansas River and one of Natural Dam – both "cry out" for this type of treatment.

"Even some of my other works, such as the Geese on Wells Lake, are very horizontal," he said. "I also try to create images with strong graphic appeal. Each photograph may have a recognizable subject, but it is a two-dimensional abstraction of our world."

Wallace is a travel and nature photographer who has been shooting since he was a child in his native Northern Ireland. His work has been shown in galleries in Europe, Africa and North America. He came to UAFS in 2007. He had a previous exhibit at the Center for Art and Education in 2009.

Rinne, who has been a dean at UAFS since 2008, had been a faculty member and administrator at UAFS since 1979. He is also a musician, performing as a guest soloist with various symphonies, orchestras, jazz ensembles and professional entertainers. He and Wallace both had work in an exhibit last year at UAFS.

An opening reception for the exhibit was held June 8. The exhibit encompasses the Main Gallery and the Studio Gallery at the Center for Art and Education. The Center hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. For more information, call 479-474-7767.