Combs featured in Weaver Art Gallery

Bethel professor Jeffrey Combs is currently featured in the Weaver Art Gallery in the second of three “Artist Spotlights.” “The works that are being shown in the gallery are lenticular autostereograms, 3 dimensional still-life photographs that can be viewed without special apparatus,” said Combs. Combs’ artwork will be in the gallery until Nov. 3 and can be viewed everyday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., excluding Sundays. “From a young age, I’ve had a fascination with art, science, and visual experience,” said Combs. “I think I was drawn to photography because it combines all three. My inspiration comes from many great artists and photographers — from Albrecht Durer to James Nachtwey to David Hockney and Olivia Parker.” Although Combs has always had a fascination with art, he did not think he would work with it later in life. “I was born in France (parents were in the military), lived in Germany, but mostly grew up in Dayton, Ohio,” said Combs. “While I always imagined myself as a scientist—having been raised on National Geographic during the “Jet Age” and the race to the moon—it was photography that I loved.” Combs went on to get a degree in photography from the University of Dayton and then received his Masters in Fine Arts in photography from the University of Michigan. “I love photographing landscapes, and studio still life compositions as metaphors for psychological and dream states,” said Combs. “ I’m also interested in creating images that function as fascinating objects, and over the years have explored various techniques that push the envelope of conventional photography — Autostereography, holography, pinhole photography, Holga photography, and Photoshop.” According to Combs the 17th Century Dutch Art is his inspiration for his own work. Specifically, he is a fan of Vermeer, Rembrandt, and Van Dyke. “I am drawn to the beautiful atmospheres, interiors, and still-life paintings of that period,” said Combs.