Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

The Freeborn County Arts Initiative will host its current exhibit, “GAZE: A Study in Presence,” through the month of June.

The exhibit is a collection of photography featuring well-known artists and photojournalists such as Steve McCurry and Tom Millea. Most of the photos are in black and white, and all feature human subjects.

The exhibit is a collaboration between the Arts Initiative and Steve Hanson of Art Farm Iowa, who provided the photographs from his collection.

Arts Initiative program director Elisha Marin said this exhibit has been in the works for a while as the gallery usually plans its shows about two years in advance.

“Our focus is bringing fresh programming to Albert Lea,” Marin said. He was excited to have an exhibit exclusively dedicated to photography because he said when the Arts Initiative opened, there were people in the area who did not consider photography an art.

Marin also said he enjoyed working with Hanson and appreciates the contribution he has made to the arts and culture scene in the area.

When curating the pieces that would be in the exhibit, Marin said the Arts Initiative looked for pieces that had a good blend of photography and storytelling. The exhibit explores more dark and gritty themes than the gallery typically has.

Marin also said all of the photos are matted and framed similarly so as not to distract from the subjects themselves.

“You really get a sense of the differences and the processes, but you just get a feeling and a vibe off of the models,” he said.

As a music nerd, he added, his favorite piece is an early photo of Bob Dylan taken by photographer Elliott Landy.

Several of the pieces in the exhibit were taken by Tom Millea, a photographer who utilized distinct stylistic techniques in both capturing images and developing them.

Marin said Millea mastered a technique that uses platinum curing during a photo’s development. The technique is rarely used now because it is very toxic, so Millea was one of the last artists to use it.

“I think this show is great for Albert Lea in the sense that it provides unique insight into some really cool processes in photography, such as the platinum photography,” said Arts Initiative intern, Macy Taylor. She also said she likes that photos can be interpreted differently depending on who views them.

A closing reception for the “GAZE” exhibit will be from 5 to 7 p.m. June 26 at the Arts Initiative gallery at 224 S. Broadway Ave. in the Historic Bessesen building. Hanson will be at the event to discuss the pieces at the exhibit and answer questions. The photos will be displayed at the gallery through June 28.

The exhibit will also be available to view during regular business hours of 1 to 4 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and from 1 to 7 p.m. Thursdays, as well as by appointment.