Photography inspired me to be fearless in chasing dreams and doing a little bit of everything I ever wanted to do. It worked. It also has gifted me with a lot of wonderful friends who inspired me through the years and still do; photographers and gallery members, teachers and students, artists and art lovers, musicians and music lovers, historians, local and international cultural icons, all these incredible people who have passed through my life and added to it.

On this journey, years ago, I fell in love with making art with my camera and with traveling to spectacularly old places, trying to recreate those vintage postcards of days gone by with hand-colored images on silver gelatin prints. It was hard to let go of film (lovely and grainy) and fiber-based papers (rich and sturdy), but it all finally gave way with digital experiments of camera and phone, apps and mixed media, and finally digital editing.

As photographers, we subconsciously find things we are drawn to and through the years, finally acknowledge it. You’ll see a lot of flowers in my work as I’m always fascinated by their brief beauty whether they are in my garden, or in more than a few instances in this show, in Monet’s Garden in Giverny. Each time I visit different flowers are showing their beauty, and my most recent time, the tulips were in abundance and therefore, my exhibit card.

There will also be a segment honoring my rock’n’roll life because that, as well as photography opened so many doors for me and allowed me to not only meet my musical heroes but play music with them.

Other pieces will highlight Notre Dame and the changes before and since the fire, including two silver gelatin pieces, one highlighting the wooden centerpiece of the roof that was lost.

To come full circle, and become a photography teacher at Fresno City College, inspiring a whole new generation of photographers, was a bonus, and a bucket list item I didn’t even know I had.

This photographic exhibit honors thirty years of knowing wonderful people, visiting exciting places and having great adventures, with my camera by my side. 

As part of Spectrum’s educational series Friday Photography Live, Rebecca will be giving a presentation “Traveling with My Camera” on June 23, 2023, at 7 pm at the Spectrum Art Gallery. The event is open to the public.

Spectrum Art Gallery’s New Hours of Operation:

Thursdays and Fridays: 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Saturdays and Sundays: 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM