Matt Luman is currently pursuing his degree in photography at Odessa College. Like many people, he always had an interest in photography but never knew much about what it takes to make a good picture. “When I first started taking photography seriously, I found that so many things around me could be photographed in such a way that turned them into something better than snapshots. Something greater than a documentation of what is around us is what I turned my attention to. I tried to have an artistic eye so to speak. Although I never really considered myself an artist, I knew that it was something that I should aim for. Now that I am in my last year of school, I really see things through the shutter in a way that I could not before. I am really enjoying photography right now and want to continue doing what I enjoy for as long as I can. ”
The pieces on display are a collection from Matt’s recent trip to Europe. Started in Poznan, Poland and taking the train, he ventured all the way to Rome, Italy. Along the way he saw some of the most interesting and beautiful cities in the world. Vienna, Prague, Venice, Florence, and Rovinj are just some of the cities he ventured to in his month-long excursion. “All I wanted to do was set a plan of places that I had to see for photographic purposes. Most of my trip was based upon what I wanted to take pictures of. I love the row houses of Poznan, Poland. One of the first cities was Poznan because of the destruction it endured. Underneath the clean façade of the row houses, a terrible history of Hitler occupied Poland was revealed. In fact, nearly the whole city center was reduced to rubble during that time and rebuilt from the ground up. I thought it was the most impressive place. Other cities had their unique splendor as well. From the oldest bridge in Europe, to the Austrian Parliament, to the beautiful Venetian Canals and the laidback, colorful houses of Croatia, I really aimed to take an image of something millions of people have seen in a unique and creative way. I feel that I accomplished this with these images.”
The Images on display are printed on Aluminum sheets and mounted to a wall without framing. The metal is so luminous and glossy that it really brings out the colors in the images. This collection is part of a series on Europe titled “Dzen Dobry, A Collection”, meaning “Good Day” in Polish.
Some of Matt's featured work is shown below.
