Stephanie Van Auken

For as far back as I can remember I’ve always been involved in something creative or art related. At around the age of 5 I knew I was destined to be a designer. Over the years I have dabbled around in various mediums never really giving it much thought, just going where the wind took me so to speak. I graduated high school in 1996 and spent a few years in working odd jobs until I realized what I wanted to do in life. In 1999 I landed an amazing job working for marketing firm in which allowed me plenty of creative freedom when entertaining sales proposals and designing the imagery for the proposal. Something must have struck a chord with the company as I was the one primarily in charge of giving the final approval of others visual layouts before presenting them to clients. In 2002 on the small success I was having at my job, I decided to enroll in the graphic design program at Onondaga Community College in Syracuse, NY. I thrived in subjects such as Intro to Web Design, Intro to Computer Graphics, and all of my design courses. I worked in a variety of mediums: digital, canvas, various papers, crayon, ink…you name it we pretty much used it for the classes. Unfortunately my weakness is in drawing. I’ve always loved to draw but I fell short when it came to drawing by hand as everything comes out cartoonish. But I’ve found that I can compensate that for a very strong form in technical drawing. Give me a t-square, a few rulers, my beloved compass, some triangles, etc and I can create you a visionary masterpiece based on how I see things.

In 2005, after reviewing a series of unfortunate events, I made a quick decision to move from New York to the Midwest, landing in the strange state of Nebraska. The reason I landed here was that I had a couple of friends from Nebraska who have been a surprise anchor in my life-changing moment. Even though I’ve only lived here a few short years I still find it a strange but fascinating place. Living here has brought out a latent creative flair that I didn’t know existed, that being photography. I’ve take a handful of shots when I was still living in New York, but it wasn’t something I gave much thought to. It wasn’t until about a year ago that I heard the call from within to explore this new interest. At the time I had landed a job as a photo technician in the photo center at Walmart. Over the months while working there the call became louder and louder until I couldn’t take it anymore. I had to explore photography and I knew I wouldn’t stop until I became a part of it. I recently completed a course in photography for one of my degree requirements for the Visual Publications program I am currently enrolled in at Southeast Community College in Lincoln, Nebraska. Instructors in both my photography and other art classes have marveled at the display I’ve presented to them for criticism ad not only have stated time and again that I have the ‘eye’ for it, but that I really need to start pursuing this. It was upon these suggestion by friends, family, associates and other professionals in the industry, I’ve decided to branch out and start showcasing my photography. My next step is to get my work into galleries and start expanding my talents outside my friends, family and school.

Subjects I find to be odd, strange or interesting for my personal use, have turned out to be appreciated by most everyone that has seen my work and have started requesting prints for their own collection. My portfolio to date consists of landscapes, objects, events, animals and people ranging from ‘industrial’ to everyday life. I can work either on a studio or a commercial level, but I prefer on location assignments for I love adventure. But when asked if I plan on putting aside design for the moment to focus on photography, the answer is no. I feel that the training I’ve received as a designer has helped my transition into photography with ease as concepts, theories, formalities and such are almost identical between the two.