John Wren


Thailand 1972

John grew up in a decaying New England factory town that did not offer much in the line of a traditional arts environment. Luckily it did leave time to explore curiosities. One was the interest in image making, a cheap Polaroid camera soon led to wanting more. The "more" came in the form of a tropical adventure during Vietnam and hiding in an Air Force photo hobby shop during his off time. The place was cool, dark, empty, and a wonderful place to stumble through the process of self teaching the methods of taking and developing images.

From that point on he has endeavored to capture the world around him. Always with a darkroom at an arms reach, B&W and Ektachrome slide film were the easiest way to express himself. The visions of war laden aircraft thundering north, light bouncing around a late afternoon cityscape or the red highlights gleaming from a young woman’s long hair all captured through a lens.

Today the smell of darkroom chemicals are gone, replaced with a far more eco friendly light room filled with electronic wizardry. The media may have changed, his body may have aged, but the mind and eyes still seek the visual curiosities that have always captured his imagination.  Today’s interests include studio and aerial photography.

John worked for Eastman Kodak for nearly twenty years. He has a background in both traditional and digital photography. He currently works as a new media designer and technology instructor at UMass-Lowell.

Laura has taken up photography in the last few years, after raising a family and now finding herself with time to pursue her own interests. 

Her photographs are landscapes, both urban and rural.  Being a Pisces, they often depict water.   The pictures often show the beauty or uniqueness that she sees, as opposed to what one might consider reality.  She enjoys traveling and bringing home memories to share with everyone. 

Laura has attended digital photography, photo imaging and related classes and seminars at the Maine Media Workshop, the New Hampshire Institute for the Arts and the DeCordova Museum.  She is a member of the Western Avenue Studios Artists Association, the Arts League of Lowell, and the Merrimack Valley Photoshop Group.