THIRD YEAR SHOW ARTIST STATEMENTS
Christine Alba (@thehappilyeverafter): I started my instagram account nearly six years ago so that I could have a place to document my days with iPhone photos of people, places and things that I love, including playful flatlays of food and objects from nature. I think with patience and careful attention, we can find beauty in simple, ordinary subjects, and I try to capture and share such beautiful simplicity in my photos. I take pride in being able to say that even after all these years, 99.9% the photos I post to instagram are taken and edited on my iPhone.
Kayleigh Ann Archbold (@herheartlaughs) is the owner of Laughing Heart Photography. She was raised in Hewitt, New Jersey but has called Montclair home for the past six years. Â Sheâs a soul-baring wife, artist, photographer, chaser of light, and adventurer. She spends most of her time daydreaming about being a mermaid and traveling this beautiful planet with her husband Jason.
Alessandra Agabiti Braghelli (@unaromanainamerica): Born in Rome, moved to NJ for love. Mom, lifestyle blogger. Loves Autumn, healthy food, coffee, old fashioned houses. Her happy places are libraries and Wildwood. Wanderlust.
T. J. Brown (@photobyteresa): Mama Bear, Earth child, dedicated steward of the environment, Educator, Biologist in training, Dance Instructor, Writer, SJ native. If you find me under the sun or stars, dancing to a great band, with wild curly hair, and my shoes nowhere to be found, you've caught me in my most lively element.
Theresa Campbell (@tcampbell210) is a hobbyist who loves to travel, take photos, and share them with the Instagram community. She runs several hubs on IG including @just_unitedstates (in its 5th year!) and @just_newjersey.
Meaghan Cross (@ohkichan195): Being able to share my perspective through a lens is fun for me. Others get to share in my experiences and I get to document them to look at them later. More often than not, my friends have come to me to ask if I still have pictures from a particular outing or party; the answer is always yes. I like it for it's documentation purposes and that it's also a form of art I get to experiment with. I've tried painting and drawing, but I've always circled back to photography more often than not. I think it's partially what influenced my job choice; Radiologic Technologist (or X-ray tech for short).
Zevilla Dahliana (@zezefox) is an Outdoor Advocate. She supports positive change within her community by promoting an active lifestyle. She is passionate about the outdoors; you can often find her hiking mountains, kayaking, biking, and snapping photos in between.
Gina Danza (@wildginaa) is an outdoor and food photographer who is always looking for new places. Her mission is the make the outdoors more diverse and healthy.
Craig DeCicco (@macaloin) is a photographer and real estate agent from Jersey City who enjoys shooting landscapes/cityscapes and traveling in his free time. Craig is a published photographer whose work has been exhibited in galleries throughout New York and New Jersey.
Jessica Defabritis (@jessica.def): Photography is such an interpretive art form that is so fun to share. It leaves it up to the viewer to decipher what the story is behind each shot. Whether it be a person experiencing a wonderful new place or a tiny heart shaped leaf in the middle of the woods. You decide why those things matter most as you gaze at them. It's what makes it special, you get to tell a story but only you know the true plot. Making them beautiful to look at is just the fun part.
Keith Drennan (@mrblackthorn) is a photographer from Jersey. He generally focuses on landscape and portrait photography.
Sarah Erbe (@saraherbe3) is a 24 year old from Bay Head, New Jersey. She works in retail as an Assistant Buyer. Her hobbies include photography, traveling, and blogging.
Bart Everts (@bartlehe) is a librarian at the Paul Robeson Library at Rutgers University-Camden and a historian of the Philadelphia region. He has written articles on South Jersey and the Philadelphia area for Hidden City Philadelphia, The Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia, Camden County Heritage, and Pennsylvania History. In addition to his personal Instagram, he also manages the account South Jersey Vegan @sjpvegan, which features vegan food in South Jersey, Philadelphia, and beyond. A native of Collingswood, he now lives in West Philadelphia.
Scott Faytok (@sfaytok78) is a photographer in Central NJ who loves the shore and traveling. His favorite spot is Bay Head. He loves showing off his state.
Jamie Ferrugiaro (@missjamiekaren) is a sort of jack-of-all trades creative who is passionate about the outdoors, traveling, and art. She has lived in Jersey her whole life, and loves the East Coast.
Mike Forgie (@prestonlogan) is a Digital Marketing Specialist. He would love for you to figure out what his username is from.
Olivia Frawley (@livfreddy): I am a mid-20s high school biology and marine biology teacher. I love teaching my students concepts they can both observe and apply when they go out in the real world! In the meantime, I try to capture as much beauty as possible right here in NJ; from the hidden oases in the middle of the woods to fiery sunrises at the beach during fishing season. Maybe we will just let everyone else keep thinking it's "dirty" here - and the beauty can be our little secret.
Jessica Grennen (@Simply_jessg87) was born and raised in New Jersey and has always been the creative type. She likes to think she followed in her dad's love of photography and hasn't stopped since. Sheâs drawn to nature and architecture mostly, âone being fluid and the other bold, hard lines; my ying and yang I guess you could say.â In the future she would love to start selling her art but for now she is content sharing it with friends and family.
Michael Guccione (@michaelguccionephoto) spends most of his time photographing at the beach in Monmouth and Ocean counties. He has been a New Jersey resident for 9 years now, and loves showing people how beautiful this state is.
Kate Hausman (@Khaus11):I am a Park Naturalist from Ocean County, but I spent the past two years living and working in Stokes State Forest in Sussex County. I've enjoyed documenting the differences between my southern and northern homes, particularly the natural/ecological ones.
Andrea Hayes (@andreas.photos): I believe there is so much beauty to be found in our surroundings, you just have to look for it. That is one of the reasons why I explore New Jersey. The other is that I love photography. Instagram has been a wonderful way to connect both.
Cristal Johnson (@cristalinaj): Mama. Teacher. Sunchaser. Dreamer. The skies, the seas, and the world around me.
Youn Lee (@yjbunnylee) has been living in Basking Ridge, NJ (Somerset County) for over four years. She is currently a graduate student at Pratt Institute and a freelance UX designer. She loves traveling up and down the I-95 corridor with her husband. She was born and raised in South Korea.
Micael Lopes (@billyoliver) is a self-taught photographer and instagramer from Brazil. He considers New Jersey his home because it is where he grew as an artist and it has shaped his photography skills in the way he sees light, color, and natural elements. He often likes to incorporate nature with a twist of urban style in his photos in light settings. As an artist he strives to create work that will evoke emotions and inspire others. Â
Matt Marcheski (@mattmarcheski) is a portrait and landscape photographer from the Atlantic City area. Traveling and meeting new people is his thing!
David McGraw Jr. (@ddmcgrawjr): I've worked as a concert and nightclub photographer for the past four years. Having grown up in New Jersey it's been great to come back and take photos, especially during my Jersey Collective week last year (election week in November). I hope to cover emerging music scenes in Newark and Trenton in the future.
Matt Murawinski (@mattmurawinski) is a 20-something nomad-at-heart. Producer for CNN by day and photographer by night (and weekends).
Donovan Myers (@stryfe2103): Storyteller and Wanderer from South Jersey. I've lived in New Jersey since I was 5, but only recently began to discover the hidden wonders of this place. I've spent the last few years wandering the state with camera in hand, discovering parts of this state I never imagined, and trying to tell a bit about these places through my pictures and my stories.
Arati Patel (@aratip05) has a background in Environmental Law and Policy. She has had a passion for the outdoors since she was young. She enjoys discovering small pockets of nature within urban areas and always had an appreciation of how resilient urban ecosystems are. She thinks that Jersey Collective is a wonderful community to help photo enthusiasts of all ages and backgrounds have a chance to showcase their talent and the beauty of New Jersey and is thankful for this opportunity.
Natalie Pereira (@rockbeertravel): I have been fascinated with photo documenting my life and the world around me since I got my first LeClic camera in the 80s! I am completely self-taught and just focus on what I see and how I see it. In my professional life, I run a series of artisan markets in Jersey City called Marketplace JC and am lucky enough to be part of a network of artists in artisans in New Jersey.
Corrie Peterson (@upbeatlibrarian): i'm upbeat. i'm a librarian. i'm corrie peterson, just a human animal living alongside the atlantic ocean in new jersey, spending my time growing & stretching, learning & reading, taking walks, swimming laps, writing poems, looking for treasure & making art out of books that nobody else wanted.
Artyom Pocapinskis (@art_poca) is inspired by nature and always in search of new adventures and experiences.
Cindy Price (@mostlymaplewood) has written extensively about food and travel for the New York Times and the American Michelin Guides. Her Mostly Maplewood photography project began when she moved to Maplewood, NJ with her husband and two young sons and began exploring the area. She shoots solely on her iPhone 7.
Jennifer Rojas (@digital.concepts) was born and raised in upstate NY. She moved to NJ about 13 years ago. She began photographing and exploring NJ and the surrounding areas about four years ago and hasnât stopped since. Â
Jason M. Schack (@jmschack_photography) is a nature and landscape photographer from Waretown NJ, located in Southern Ocean County. You can find him anywhere along the Jersey Coast for sunrise and sunset. Fall and Winter are his favorite seasons for photography, and he hopes to see you out there!
Ana Mo Shoshin (@madcat1) is a hand-quilter and artist living in Asbury Park, NJ with her husband and cats. She enjoys taking photos, coffee, rocks, and bones. See her work at madcatquilts.com.
Michelle Simone (@michelle.simone) is a multimedia artist who specializes in photography, deejaying, and filmmaking. New Jersey is very inspirational to her--from its culture to its geography to all of the hidden treasures it has to offer.
Jaclyn Sovern (@jsovs) is a 24-year-old based in the Tri-State area, with a BFA in Photography from The School of Visual Arts. In 2016 she launched her own company, Socially Relevant, a full-service agency providing day-to-day social media management, content creation, website design, and more. Visit her websites www.jaclynsovern.com & www.sociallyrelevantt.com.
Diana Van Horn (@dianavanfarley) is a portrait and lifestyle photographer based out of Asbury Park and has lived in various parts of New Jersey her entire life. When sheâs not out photographing the cute @AnimalsofAsbury, she enjoys documenting local events & politics.
Ed Waldron (@edwaldrons): I try to capture the built environment we have created within the natural beauty of the state. Pictures that incorporate architecture, constructed environments, and their placement in nature give a true sense to how we live and what makes New Jersey a great place to be.
David Warner (@davidwarnerphotography) grew up in New Jersey and has called it home all his life. Â When he was 12 years old, he had a darkroom in his parentsâ basement and was hooked ever since. Â Although he does headshots, weddings, and much more, he really loves capturing the history and nature that we have all around us in the Garden State.
Ben Wurst (@reclaimednj) is a field biologist who is happily married with two young children. He works with rare wildlife along the southeastern coast of New Jersey. Heâs into everything related to the outdoors, including photography. He tries to use his creative skills in his work to highlight the need for conservation of wildlife and habitat preservation. In 2011 he started a small business centered around reducing wood waste being sent to landfills and use that salvaged wood to create picture frames and other creations.
