Name of Artist: |
Jo Mathis
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Dates of Artist’s Life: |
Jo Mathis graduated from high school in 1975. She graduated from Southern Illinois University - Carbondale 3.5 years later.
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Personal Background: |
She is European-American and one of seven kids - having five brothers and a sister. She attended Catholic school throughout eighth grade in East Alton, Illinois. Overall, Jo Mathis had a happy childhood, but she remembers being worried and afraid that her older brothers would be drafted into the Vietnam war. At the time, she was also quite concerned for her grandmother who was living in Chicago during the race riots, and all of the killings that were occurring. She understands that many people think it was easier being a child during the 60s and 70s, but also knows of the terrifying events going on, making her very sensitive to all of that speculation.
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Style: |
Jo doesn't really think that she has a style. She doesn't keep anything in mind when she takes pictures. Although she thinks this, I have noticed that in each of her pictures, she manages to capture the exact feeling of actually being where the picture was taken. She has never been to school for photography, but says that all she really has in terms of a style is an eye for photography. Although she personally has never taken a photography course, her husband - a professional photographer with his own studio - has taught her a few tricks.
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Philosophy: |
"I believe in getting as close up as I need to be, and I look for some kind of emotion in the subject." Jo always makes sure that a viewer will feel something when they look at her work. She doesn't feel the need to capture every pretty or interesting thing that she sees. She believes in being in the moment rather than always taking pictures. Jo's pictures are very social, taking place mostly at events around the Ann Arbor area, but she also manages to include a story in each frame - displaying emotion and passion especially in the students at AAPS.
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Influences: |
This photographer has influenced me through all of the work she has done for AAPS as a whole. Whenever I see her at school events I know that I will soon see the pictures she's taken on the homepage for the district. I really admire her ability to capture an event in its entirety, going so far as to keeping the actual feeling of being there. The pictures that I see of hers each tell a different story, that much is evident, and it really helps me to keep in mind what people will think when they see my pictures. She inspires me to understand when the right time to take a picture is, to understand that sometimes it's better to just see rather than to take a photograph of everything.
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Sources: |
Jo Mathis - [email protected]
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Jo Mathis' Pictures
My Pictures
Compare and Contrast: |
Starting with the blossom images, hers is farther away from the flower, it is closer to the right side of the frame, and the fence behind it is closer to the flower. With the dandelion pictures, I think they are pretty similar. The greens behind mine are a bit more sparse, and the dandelion I chose was a bit ragged compared to hers. In the pond scene, there are a few things that are quite different. First, her viewpoint was farther from the bank of the pond than mine was, the bush that is on the lower right side of the frame in hers is in the left middle in mine, her picture was taken on a nicer day. Also, there is a difference in the plants around the pond. Her picture is obviously set before flowers bloomed in spring, mine was after.
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Personal Artist Statement:
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I tried to do my best to recreate Jo's pictures. Since she is a local photographer, it was easier to find where her pictures were taken. Not only that, but she works in the same building as my mom, so I knew that these pictures could be from around there. The first picture of the blossoms was hard to take because I couldn't find a stretch of flowers that looked similar. The dandelion was a bit easier to find, but it had just rained hard the day before I took my pictures, and the dandelions were a bit rough-looking. The last picture of the pond was, in my opinion, the easiest to find. I think it was just a matter of making an attempt to line up the shot.
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