If you move onto college your mind is exposed to so much knowledge on such a variety of subjects that you actually start to believe you do know it all.
If you then venture into a professional degree program, all that knowledge becomes irrelevant, if it is not related to your "advanced degree". I chose law school (although I suspect all doctorate level programs maybe the same) and became so immersed in "the law" nothing else mattered. It was more than a full time endeavor.
Law school subsequently squeezed out all of the knowledge I had accumulated in college and replaced it with "the law". The law was a source of all knowledge and way of life. I felt I had learned a lot, but I had forgotten a awful lot more.
So while practicing law I tried to broaden my horizons again and decided to take college courses on the side. I decided to try fine art classes and gravitated to night extension courses in photography. My instructor was Gary Hallman. I remember not producing much in the way of memorable photographs, but I did learn my way around a darkroom, the basics of composition, and yearlong courses laid the groundwork for jumping back into photography at the dawn of the digital age. (I also remember spending a lot of time in beer joints with a fellow student Richard Copely who has gone onto become a well-known local B & W street photographer. But that is another story).
So I was surprised to learn that Gary Hallman was still teaching at the U of M until just last spring. I admired his teaching style and the dedication to students he exhibited while I was in the program. (I also like the fact he didn't pan my awful images to death). I am happy to report Gary is giving an artist's talk at the MPC on November 15th. If you happen to be available, I would recommend attending to hear him speak on the evolution of photography and his own work.
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