Images reveal private lives

By Ana Tintocalis, On-line Forty-Niner

Wednesday, September 16, 1998

A photograph of an old vacant farmhouse nestled among a group of withered trees hangs on the wall of a gallery in the University Student Union. A caption underneath the picture reads, "My childhood was spent on the farms of Northern Wisconsin ... this photo is my attempt to document a noble but dying way of life that helped shape my very being."

Welcome to "Images from the Self," the Odyssey Project's first photo exhibit that captures images of self expression through the eyes of Cal State Long Beach faculty, staff, students and alumni.

"The exhibit is neat," Odyssey Director Sharon Olson said. "Those pictures say something about the photographers. They're not just self-portraits ... they reflect their interests, values and personalities."

For the past few months, Olson has encouraged the campus community to donate pictures that reflect aspects of the Odyssey's theme this year, "The Self and Its Sources: Individuals and Community."

The result is a unique exhibit that presents a variety of images ranging from a summer vacation in Niagara Falls to the daily life of a family's cat.

"Each person's work exhibited has a different sort of style," said Adam Lipman, a philosophy major.

"These photographers work in areas from philosophy to film, and from English to theater arts," Olson said. "The point was to have like a family photo exhibit, meaning the CSULB family."

The display has already attracted small crowds, one of which was an English class on campus. Students were asked to pick a picture which appealed to them, and then had to write an essay about how it made them feel.

"The goal of this exhibit is to expose what the Odyssey Project is all about," Olson said.

Another goal of the photo exhibit is to raise funds to cover the costs of receptions that will follow special Odyssey events. Therefore, all photos donated will be sold at a silent auction during the exhibition period. The minimum bid for each photograph is $5. "This is our version of a classy bake sale," Olson said.

The photo exhibit ends Friday. The gallery is open during the week from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.