Juror, Thom Sempere, selected "Saving Waffles" as a Gold Selection for the upcoming 2015 International Photography Show, titled "Photography: The Full Spectrum."  The exhibition is being presented by the North Valley Art League to be held at the Carter House Gallery in Redding, California.  The framed metal print titled "Saving Waffles" features a recently adopted rescue dog that has been digitally photographed and altered using a variety of contemporary techniques to give a painterly effect.  The jigsaw puzzle is a concept used to entice the viewer to complete the picture by stepping up to adopt unwanted dogs. The juror selected approximately 90 images, from the 1194 images submitted, for the print exhibition (Gold Selections), and approximately 50 images for digital presentation (Silver Selections).

Mr. Sempere is currently the Executive Director of PhotoAlliance, a non-profit dedicated to supporting contemporary photography.  He is also currently a visiting faculty member at the San Francisco Art Institute as well as a lecturer in Continuing Studies program at Stanford University, teaching photography.  His work in curatorial and arts administration began in 1983 in Seattle, as curator of the Joseph and Elaine Monse Collection of Photography, and later as Director of Education and Exhibitions at Photographic Center Northwest.  Subsequently, he worked ten years at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art with that institution's distinguished collection of photography.  He received a BGS degree with a concentration in Art History from the University of Michigan, a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography from San Francisco Art Institute and a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Washington.  His photographs are in the permanent collection at San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) and have been exhibited in venues across the United States as well as in China.

As the digital artist of the piece, and a owner of a rescue dog as well, I have recently been working with and photographing rescue dogs, primarily with the Wake County SPCA in North Carolina.  In that state, 119,751 dogs and cats were put down just in 2014. The National Council On Pet Population estimates that 3.7 million unwanted pets are put down annually nationwide. Through photography, I hope to bring further support and resources to the organizations helping to address this issue and encourage viewers to consider adoption of these pets.

The Exhibition opens April 28 and will run through May 30, 2015. A reception will be held May 2, from 6:00-800 PM.  For information about the North Valley Art League and Carter House Gallery, please visit their Web site at http://www.nval.org

Saving Waffles