CSM Hosts Photographer Janet Matthews in a Virtual Event to Discuss Her ‘Tangled’ Exhibit At Hungerford Gallery

The College of Southern Maryland (CSM) School of Liberal Arts invites the public to meet photographer Janet Matthews in a virtual setting to discuss her current exhibition at CSM’s Hungerford Gallery. During the Sept. 28 event, Matthews will share how she came to capture “Tangled,” a body of work photographed in area woodlands after she survived a medical emergency that had her contemplating life and death.

“I became fascinated with the bare trees covered with gnarled vines,” Matthews shared of her exhibit. “I perceived an anatomical visual quality to them that I wanted to try to explore further. The twists and tangles of the vines and branches seemed analogous to the chaos in my head. They became forms to contemplate, puzzles to solve, maps to decipher, and iconography to translate - a way to process the thoughts on mortality that occupied my mind.”

Matthew is a Maryland-based artist who explores psychological themes through evocative still life and landscape images. She graduated from the University of Maryland, earning degrees in Studio Art and Art Education. Her background in drawing and painting has influenced her approach to photography, as she often incorporates hands-on methods into her work. She taught art in the Montgomery County Public Schools system for a number of years, and has also taught classes at Photoworks in Maryland’s Glen Echo Park.

“[Matthews] has exhibited her work nationally, in group and solo shows,” according to her webpage. “Her work has been featured in numerous books and publications including Polymer Photogravure: A Step-by-Step Manual by Clay Harmon and Seeing in Sixes by Brooks Jensen and Maureen Gallagher. She was awarded Individual Artist Award grants by the Maryland State Arts Council in 2012 and 2015, and her work is in the collections of the University of Maryland and the Montgomery County Arts and Humanities Council.”

The event begins at 2 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 28 via Zoom. Register to receive Zoom information for this free event at https://csmd.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcscuCqpjMpG93kEoTZwgp7WLwfDgITzps3.

 Learn more about Matthews at www.janetmatthewsphotography.com.