The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Pullen Art Gallery will host a special exhibition in April featuring the work of photography students. The Student Photography Exhibition will be on display from April 1 to 22, with an opening reception on Friday, April 1 from 6-7:30 p.m. during the April First Friday Art Walk. All are invited to attend this free event. Light refreshments will be available.

Two levels of course work will be represented in the exhibit. Beginning and advanced photography students will share several of their assigned projects, highlighting such topics as human form, human emotion, architecture, and commentary views on the obsession with “screens,” and reconstructed space.

UMPI Adjunct Faculty Carol Ayoob received her Master’s degree in Intermedia from the University of Maine in 2012, and now teaches photography classes not only to art majors at UMPI, but to a variety of community members who are interested in developing a deeper artistic praxis within the field. Ayoob exposes her students to a plethora of historical and contemporary figures, and group critiques prove crucial for evaluating and examining presented images.

Advanced photography students Jennifer Farr, Laurie Smythe Doody, Michaela King, Roldena Sanipass, Ward Gerow, and Marc Knapp travel from Ashland, Caribou, Mars Hill and Houlton to attend the Thursday evening class taught by Ayoob.

“The class is encouraged to spend more time on projects to develop ideas and values that are portrayed in their works. Making a movie with photos, reconstructing space with a number of photos, making images that reflect one’s philosophy on the effect of television or hand-held devices, and always working with understanding of light, my advanced students are in the process of discovering the broad range of possible artistic applications for their images,” Ayoob said.

Beginning photography students Andrew Bellamy, Tonya Godin, Ning Sun, Rebekah Walker, Huiting Yang, Michelle Tardiff, and Tong Liu have devoted their Thursday evenings to printing, matting and sharing their new ventures in the media.

Said Ayoob of her beginning students: “When combined with a sense of the rich historical and philosophical underpinnings of the media, and the push to get out and shoot at every possible time of day, and with a focus on the “truth” of an image, my students are bringing in work at midyear that is worthy of viewing in an exhibition of this nature. Digital Photography skills are developed throughout the semester, but this is second to learning to see!”

The public is encouraged to come out for First Friday on April 1 to attend the free opening reception and celebrate the photography students’ group show, and also view the show throughout its run.

The Pullen Art Gallery is open daily from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. The gallery is closed during University holidays. For more information about this event, please contact Ayoob at carol.ayoob@maine.edu. You can also follow gallery happenings on the UMPI Art Facebook page, www.facebook.com/UMPIAD, or on Instagram @umpiart.