Erik Holladay: Photography

February 8 - 28, 2013
Reception: Thursday, February 14, 2013, 6 p.m. - 7 p.m. in the lobby. Everyone is welcome!
Website: eholladay.com

Erik Holladay is an alumnus of Forest Hills Central Class of 1990. He is the very first alumni visual artist-in-residence for the program. For 25 years Erik Holladay has blended documentary and fine art photography as a photojournalist. Holladay started shooting professionally at age 15 for the Advance, a weekly newspaper in Grand Rapids, Michigan. After earning… Show more a bachelor's degree in photography from Grand Valley State University, he worked at several Michigan newspapers including The Grand Rapids Press, The Flint Journal and The Jackson Citizen Patriot. He moved to Kalamazoo in 2009 to start a new chapter in his life by starting his own photography business. He has won numerous national and state awards, including Michigan Clip Photographer of the Year in 2002. He was honored by having his work included in the Associated Press Photographs of the Century in 1998. Holladay is also an instructor at Michigan State University, where he teaches a class in photojournalism.

"As an artist, I am always trying to find the moment of getting lost in the process of transforming ideas into photographs. I enjoy waiting and watching the light hit the subject in just the right manner and letting the composition develop. Time seems to slow as I become more aware of small details and graphic elements, states Erik.

"As a sports photographer, one is constantly trying to capture that perfect millisecond of action. That peak moment. If you see it in the viewfinder ... then you've missed it. I became fascinated with the creative potential of that moment. I started to explore ways to expand it or compress it using shutter speed, exposure and depth of field. I then took that idea and married it to my affection for strong graphic elements, creating artistic photographs taken on the chaotic stage of sports.The challenge is harnessing the frantic pace of sports inside the deliberate act of creating an artistic expression."

All exhibits will be open for public viewing during regular hours of operation (Monday–Friday, 8 a.m.–5 p.m.) and designated evening hours.

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