Photo exhibitions explore place, environment, human experience
The University Art Gallery at Sonoma State University will present two concurrent photography exhibitions, “Mere Seconds: Andrew Owen” and “Insight/Incite 20/20: PhotoAlliance 20th Anniversary Portfolio,” from Sept. 3 through Oct. 17, 2026.
Guest-curated by Bay Area artist and Bass & Reiner Gallery co-founder Chris Grunder, the exhibitions showcase the breadth of contemporary photographic practice, bringing distinct artistic voices into conversation through shared explorations of place, environment, and the human experience.
“Mere Seconds: Andrew Owen” presents 16 landscape photographs that examine ecological transformation across California during recent cycles of megafires and floods. Created between 2020 and 2026, the series grew from extensive travel documenting communities and environments shaped by extreme weather. Working primarily with a 4-by-5 view camera, Owen focuses on physical and conceptual boundaries where ecological change, human experience, and moments of the sublime converge.
“Mere Seconds” examines the climate crisis through an expansive visual lens. Photographs of burned terrain, fire-retardant-stained fields, and other transformed environments are juxtaposed with moments of unexpected beauty, revealing tensions between vulnerability and resilience, loss and renewal. Blending documentary observation with poetic sensibility, the exhibition reflects on California’s changing landscapes and the broader ecological and cultural narratives that shape our relationship with the natural world.
“Insight/Incite 20/20: PhotoAlliance 20th Anniversary Portfolio” celebrates two decades of PhotoAlliance’s contributions to the Bay Area photographic arts community. Curated by PhotoAlliance founder and Creative Director Linda Connor, the portfolio brings together 20 works by local, national, and international artists, exploring themes of resilience, identity, community, migration, environmental change, and social justice.
Together the exhibitions showcase diverse artistic visions and approaches, underscoring the medium’s power to engage pressing contemporary issues while creating opportunities for connection and understanding.
An opening reception will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 3 and on Saturday, Oct. 3, the gallery will host a panel discussion. The exhibitions, reception, and panel discussion are free and open to the public.
For more information, please visit the University Art Gallery website.