Photographer Savannah Cole captures Leon County Library's light and shadows
Library staff member Savannah Cole captures the battle between light and dark to reveal beauty in the mundane in the LeRoy Collins Leon County Public Library’s newest exhibit, "Scenes of Silience," a nod to unnoticed excellence.
Claim it! Be it!
What makes someone an artist? Is it selling your first painting to a prestigious gallery? Or is it when you are confident enough to gift your ceramics to others? Does every guitarist consider themselves an artist after their first riff? Claiming the title of “traditional artist” is difficult for some.
They may feel their work is not good enough or their craft is just that and not “art.” The struggle is real and comes with a constant back-and-forth of claiming to be an “artist” or feeling the title doesn't apply to them.
Such is the case for artist Savannah Cole, who has never seen herself as a traditional artist and instead focuses on creating decorative objects and other things by hand. “I have always been crafty though, and have thought of myself as crafty,” says Cole. “I really enjoy making something out of nothing.”
She experimented with clay and sculpture as a child, creating beautiful 3D projects. Time went on, and Cole began to experiment with scale in her work, building giant collages as well as miniatures from upcycled trash and knick-knacks.
Her love of jewelry led her to silversmithing, but eventually, her lifelong obsession with cameras caught up with her and captured her heart. She turned to photography as a form of expression. “This was around the time I started working at the library, and my boss at the time was adamant that I was an ‘artist,’ and I thought, ‘hmmm, maybe I am,’ but I’m still not convinced.”
Follow the light
SNAP! goes the shutter. Savannah’s photographer's eye has caught the moment. It is an intimate one she shares between the camera and the object refracted through the lens. She allows these moments to find her. Each image becomes a preservation of her own genuine and authentic experiences.
“I want to capture something so true to how it is that I can pass it along to someone - as if I am taking the moment and memory straight from my brain and putting it into [the image],” shares Cole. “That is how I see my photography.”
The light leads the way in Cole’s photography.
Attracted to the juxtaposition of light and dark, she can often be found moving, lying down, or in an awkward position to catch the light exactly how her eye sees it. Next, she adjusts the brightness of the photo so that it truly captures the light as seen by her own eyeballs. She does not add filters to any image; she simply adjusts the angle to make it straight. “
So, the last step for me is goofily adjusting the photo to be straight,” chuckles Cole. “I don’t know what it is, but for the life of me, I just can’t take a photo straight.”
Cole’s solo exhibit at The LeRoy Collins Leon County Public Library, "Scenes of Silience," plays with light, structure, and silhouette to share the moments of beauty throughout the library over a year. As the library’s Staff Development and Customer Experience Coordinator, Cole has a unique understanding of the space and its power.
“I just need to see the huge skylight at the top of our library, radiating light into a three-story building,” Cole said. “It makes me feel important and loved, like the earth is reaching out to me. In that moment, I grab my phone, and I shoot the skylight.”
Cole describes this exhibit as “incredibly moody.” She focuses on the balance and stark contrast between light and dark in some of the library’s architectural wonders, showing almost no human subjects.
For Cole, the convergence of light and architecture produces a quiet that she thinks the viewer can feel. As a born and bred “Tallahassee Lassie,” Cole deeply appreciates nature and how the light and darks play to create remarkable views.
A distinct dislike for over-the-top Instagram-filtered edited pictures led Cole to search for authentic representations of life. She has found that outdoor photography has allowed her to slow down and appreciate the little things while simultaneously sharing that feeling with the world. The "Scenes of Silience" aims to capture the unremarkable beauty around us and marvel at the mundane.
Library leads to the reimagining of home
The library is a magical place. It holds centuries of tales on its sturdy shelves. For Cole, the library is her dream space and a personal muse. It is the place where she feels most at home, both with the community and with herself.
As a library staffer, it would only seem logical that books have been a dominant part of Cole’s life early on. “Books have taught me how to romance my life. Even in the darkest, worst times of my life, I have always found something to be grateful for and happy about,” says Cole.
“I think this comes from a mindset that ‘there’s still more to go,’ which is what draws me to books and always has.” And there is indeed more to come for Cole. Driven by optimism and a love for her community, Cole continues to serve the city that she falls more in love with daily.
The job and interactions with the incredible people who dwell in Tallahassee have brought a new reimagining of home to Cole, one she captures clearly with her camera.
"Scenes of Silience" features these hometown moments of magic in the mundane at the LeRoy Collins Leon County Public Library. Start off the new year at your local library, checking out books, movies, and artist Savannah Cole's photographic homage to the Leon County library she loves.
If you go
What: Scenes of Silience
When: 10 a.m.-9 p.m., Jan. 2-31
Where: LeRoy Collins Leon County Public Library, 200 W. Park Ave.
Contact: 850-606-2665 | Library_Exhibitions@leoncountyfl.gov; leoncountyfl.libcal.com
Dr. Christy Rodriguez de Conte is the feature writer for the Council on Culture & Arts. COCA is the capital area’s umbrella agency for arts and culture (tallahasseearts.org).
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Leon County Library staffer's photos capture quiet brilliance
