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Falls Church Arts will spotlight the work of 44 local photographers in “Light & Dark: Contrast,” a 66-piece exhibition exploring dramatic brightness, deep shadows and the tonal space between them.
The exhibition opens with a free meet-the-artists reception from 7 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, March 1, 2025, at the Falls Church Arts gallery, 700-B W. Broad St. The Juror’s Choice Award will be announced during the event.
Photographers were invited to explore contrast through color or black-and-white images. The gallery received 147 entries from 57 photographers.
Juror Aimee George said the submissions captured small but profound moments while approaching contrast through tonal shifts, unexpected subject pairings and compositions shaped by light and shadow. Some photographers interpreted the theme literally, while others used opposing emotions, memories, ideas and forces to tell broader stories.
George, an artist and educator from the Shenandoah Valley, teaches art at James Madison University. She earned a Master of Fine Arts with a concentration in photography from JMU and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Shepherd University. Her previous work includes judging a national photography exhibition at the Fredericksburg Center for the Creative Arts and presenting a JMU gallery lecture on experimental photography.
Visitors may vote at the gallery for the People’s Choice Award through March 21.
“Light & Dark: Contrast” runs from March 1 through April 6, 2025. Admission is free. Gallery hours are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. The photographs will also be displayed online, and works may be purchased through the gallery or its website.
The participating photographers are John Allen, Asia Anderson, Maureen Budetti, DeVante Capers, Kathleen Conklin, Nasr Dallaa, Robert Davidson, Chuck Dervarics, Success Ellington, Gregory Felder, Steven Ferri, Sharon Fields, Rafael Franco Dolande, Maureen Goss, James Hengst, Dan Hildt, Justin Holtzman, Lizzy Javier, Steve Jennings, Chris Kagy, Nihal Koyash, Al Krachman, Thomas Lauzon, Naomi Lipsky, Samantha Mandeles, Alan McAfee, McKaid McConnel, Suzanne McIntire, Zan McKelway, Nancy M Patrick, Margaret Raymond, Elise Ritter-Clough, Carl Salsbury, Susan Sanders, Cynthia Schoeppel, Janet Sifers, Thomas Smith, Tom Updike, John Valenti, Alexandra van den Heever, Jeff Vincent, David Voss, Andrew Wohl and Amy Woodhouse.