{"id":139909,"date":"2023-07-27T10:54:01","date_gmt":"2023-07-27T14:54:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/?p=139909"},"modified":"2023-07-31T12:47:32","modified_gmt":"2023-07-31T16:47:32","slug":"photo-development","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2023\/07\/27\/photo-development\/","title":{"rendered":"Photo development"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Ashley Cheak, a 2022 Wright State graduate who now works in the School of Fine and Performing Arts, challenged herself artistically as a Yeck College Artist Fellow at the Dayton Art Institute. (Photos by Erin Pence)<\/p><\/div>\n

When she received a prestigious fellowship at the Dayton Art Institute earlier this year, 2022 Wright State University graduate Ashley Cheak wanted to push herself as an artist.<\/p>\n

As a Yeck College Artist Fellow, Cheak was able to experiment with several alternative photographic processes and explore different techniques in the darkroom to elevate her understanding of photography.<\/p>\n

She approached the fellowship by asking herself: \u201cHow can I challenge what I know about photography?\u201d<\/p>\n

As she experimented with techniques like layering, solarization, double exposure and infrared photography, her work evolved.<\/p>\n

Cheak \u2014 who received a bachelor\u2019s degree in liberal studies<\/a> and minors in French<\/a> and creative writing<\/a> from Wright State and now works as a staff member in the School of Fine and Performing Arts<\/a> \u2014 prefers to shoot with film and develop her photos in the darkroom.<\/p>\n

Working in the darkroom, she said, forces her to slow down and be present with her art.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re in a dark space, there\u2019s nothing to do but focus on what you\u2019re working on,\u201d she said. \u201cI can get so distracted by overthinking my process. But in the darkroom, it\u2019s great to experiment and slow down.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cheak was among five students selected for the Yeck College Artist Fellowship at the Dayton Art Institute in early 2023. The fellowship provides young artists with opportunities to develop their art, learn about working as a professional artist and create a lesson for high school students.<\/p>\n

The program culminated in a public art exhibition at the Dayton Art Institute.<\/p>\n

Cheak displayed six pieces featuring photographs she shot at Eastwood MetroPark in Dayton. For each piece, she used a complex technique in which she flipped or reversed an image several times as she developed it in the darkroom, creating unique reflections of natural elements.<\/p>\n

Her goal was to explore how she could change the space in the image. As she manipulated each print, she started to see patterns in the images that had structures or resembled parts of the body.<\/p>\n

\u201cI kept coming back to some form of structure and weird circular web-like shapes,\u201d she said. \u201cI had no idea it was going to turn out like that. It was really a great experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cheak, who worked in the photo lab in the Creative Arts Center as a student, produced the pieces in Wright State\u2019s darkroom facilities. She received support and guidance from Tracy Longley-Cook, associate professor in photography and associate chair of the School of Fine and Performing Arts, and Ben Montague, associate professor in photography.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Ashley Cheak explored her many interests in literature, art and French culture as a student in the liberal studies program offered by the College of Liberal Arts.<\/p><\/div>\n

During the fellowship, Cheak participated in group art critiques with the other fellows and heard from guest speakers including the head curator, gallery preparation staff and Michael Roediger, the director and CEO of the Dayton Art Institute and a Wright State graduate.<\/p>\n

Cheak enjoyed learning about the intricacies of running a museum and curating exhibitions. This experience made her realize her passion for arts management and directing.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt helped me to figure out what I want to do,\u201d she said. \u201cI definitely see myself with a career in the arts, even if I am not quite sure what that looks like yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cheak is well on her way. In addition to participating in the fellowship, Cheak joined the School of Fine and Performing Arts as an administrative support coordinator during Spring Semester. She has become immersed in the school\u2019s arts programs while learning the school\u2019s administrative and financial operations.<\/p>\n

She is also planning an exhibition in the Project Space in Wright State\u2019s Robert and Elaine Stein Galleries<\/a> this fall with Shannon Gallion, a fine arts and English major at Wright State who also received a Yeck College Artist Fellowship.<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone in the community is really supportive, especially here at Wright State and in Dayton,\u201d she said. \u201cI feel like people want us to succeed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cheak, who is from the Dayton area, started studying writing and darkroom photography as a student at Stivers School for the Arts.<\/p>\n

The flexibility provided by Wright State\u2019s liberal studies program allowed Cheak to pursue her diverse interests in photography, creative writing, film, literature and French language and literature.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love being in the arts even if I\u2019m not always creating art,\u201d she said. \u201cThere\u2019s isn\u2019t only one field I\u2019m drawn to.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her attitude is simple: \u201cWhy not explore it all somehow?\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As a Yeck College Artist Fellow, Ashley Cheak experimented with alternative photographic processes and darkroom techniques to elevate her understanding of photography. Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":139921,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[722,733,4309,2037,4859,725,4863,747,715,4855,2024,4301],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-139909","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","category-alumni","category-alumni-association","category-arts-scene","category-fine-and-performing-arts","category-home-news-sidebar","category-humanities-and-cultural-studies","category-liberal-arts","category-news","category-social-sciences-and-international-studies","category-staff","category-staff-profile"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139909","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/43"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=139909"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139909\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":140034,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139909\/revisions\/140034"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/139921"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=139909"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=139909"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=139909"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}