The very meaning of the word photography is “drawing with light.” Without light neither the image nor the art exist.

In the spring of 2021, Dallas Center for Photography invited photographers of all skill levels to enter our Light juried competition with images that highlight light. We were looking for images that have light as a significant element in the image, as if the light itself is a subject in the composition.

This exhibition will be on display in the DCP Gallery from June 19 to July 10. Gallery days and hours are Tuesdays and Fridays from 12pm-6pm and Saturdays 11am-3pm.

The juror was John Langmore, an Austin, Texas based photographer pursuing long-term personal projects. His first book Open Range: America’s Big-Outfit Cowboy is the result of more than six years photographing on fourteen of the country’s largest ranches. His photographs bear the unique mark of someone intimately familiar with life in the saddle. John is also the co-director/producer of the award-winning feature length documentary film, Cowboys: A Documentary Portrait. His second book Fault Lines: Portraits of East Austin documents the rapidly disappearing communities of old East Austin.

Juror Statement: Without light neither sight nor photography would exist. Yet, I had never reflected so deeply on its many facets until I had the privilege of selecting images for this exhibition. Light itself as the subject. Light enhancing the beauty of nature. Light in contrast to shadow creating a sense of mystery. This exhibition, and the photographers behind the images it contains, reveal both the wonder of light and the talent of those that use photography to capture it.

We strongly believe that photographs deserve to exist in real life, so we are creating an exhibition book that features all of the selected images from the Light competition. More details will be available soon.