• Publication: The Red and Black (University of Georgia student newspaper)
• Author: David Twiddy, Staff Writer
• Original Publication Date: Thursday, June 25, 1992

The art department’s week-long exhibit of photographs taken by University student Jennifer Stone, who was killed spring quarter, has surprised many people with Stone’s artistic vision, said University art professor Robert Nix.

“She really had something to say,” Nix said. “She learned her processes mainly to say what she had in mind.”

Stone, whose death is still being investigated, was found slain in her apartment April 23.

Nix said many of her friends enjoyed the exhibit because it was the first time they saw her work in its entirety.

“Comments from her friends are like, ‘I remember when she was working on this,’ ” he said. “They were glad to see the sequences of her work.”

He said some were unaware of the extent of Stone’s work.

“Before, they’d only seen bits and pieces,” he said. “It was a delightful surprise for them to see how it all fit together.”

Nix helped organize the exhibit, which ends Friday, with Stone’s professors, friends and family, and said it contains photographs spanning from when she started two years ago to pictures found on a drying rack in her apartment after her death.

“We chose pictures that showed the depth of her ideas,” he said. “The exhibit is a way to resolve her efforts and bring her work to a focus.”

The 26 black and white images all involve one or two figures displaying what Nix called a “very sensitive awareness of humanity and the relationships of people.”

“They involve the roles that people play in relationships,” he said.

Several of the photographs are self-portraits where Stone is using gesture or costume to perform a role and express an idea, Nix said.

“Her strength was to totally control the lighting, the angle,” he said. “To control the total visual image.”

Mary Ruth Moore, a University photography instructor who helped choose the photographs and handle publicity, said Stone was developing a very remarkable and recognizable style.

“For someone that young, to have a recognizable style is wonderful,” Moore said. “She seemed to be on the verge of doing just that.”

Moore said the exhibit was easier to do because Stone had already gathered much of her work together.

“She had mentioned to classmates that she was excited about a senior exhibition,” Moore said. “We felt this was something that had to be done.”

Nix said several of Stone’s friends helped hang the pictures in the courtyard area of the Visual Arts Building and organized the opening reception last Friday.

“It was handled like a family affair, not somber,” Nix said. “I think it was done in very good taste.”

Moore said the exhibit was more for Stone’s family and friends than the public, but there has been a lot of public attention.

“We didn’t really publicize it,” she said. “People were very interested that such a thing was being done.”

Nix said, “The main thing for her family was a chance to see her work. They were very appreciative of everyone’s help.”

[Pull quote] “Her strength was to totally control the lighting, the angle . . . the total visual image.” —Robert Nix, art professor

[Photo caption] Lynn Bryan sketches one of Jennifer Stone’s photos for her Art 130 class. (Will Fagan / The Red and Black)