Work of BAC judges featured in September

The public is invited to view the diverse work of three photographers/artists in September at the Beloit Art Center. The three also have served as photo judges at the BAC.
Exhibiting are Cindy Vondran, Jay Mielke and Steve Bogdonas. The show will run through the end of September at 520 E. Grand Ave.
Cindy Vondran credits her strong background in art and art history for helping her to become a better photographer and digital artist. 
“With a photographer’s eye, I acutely tune in to all the sights surrounding me, and I can see art even in the most mundane,” she said. “Classical photography and computer-generated art are now merging. I have learned most of my photoshop techniques from Sebastian Michaels and other teachers. Digital processing has become a major part of my daily life.
“I am very excited to be a part of this brand new art movement, using the computer as a tool for this new medium.  Things that were formerly impossible, can now be generated, and without the need for a large studio space in which to work.  Everything that is necessary is contained within cyber space.”
Cindy describes her work as highly varied.
“Sometimes I like bold colors and sharp contrast, and other times I like simple lines and soft, hazy tones. Flowers are often a theme in my work because I like to capture their unique personality. The work of photo artist, Brooke Shaden, has been a major influence in my conceptual work.” 
She received her Bachelor of Fine Art degree in 2013.
Steve Bogdonas worked as a machinist for almost 20 years before art and music took over his life. In 2001, he started a company called The Creative Group-image and Sound Production. Always experimenting in art as a child, he received formal training at the American Academy of Art in Chicago studying fundamentals/illustration/graphic design.
This was followed up with studies at Palette and Chisel in Chicago for life drawing and oil painting.  At the Winona School of Photography, he learned negative retouching and print enhancement.
Steve also took classes in the following areas: auto cad detailer, graphic designer and technical illustrator.
He also is a musician who has played in many bands and as a soloist for 46 years. Recently, he completed five original instrumental CDs and is presently working on a sixth one.
Jay Mielke first started capturing photographs in the late 1980s as the Photography Editor of the Oakfield High School Yearbook. While his professional career in technology became the focus of his adult life, he never lost interest in photography. Eventually, as digital photography took off, his desire to explore this media grabbed hold once again.
Jay began to photograph rural and city images looking for unique ways to capture everyday objects—and present them in a new and interesting way. Over time he dove into portraiture, event photography, commercial photography, and rodeo photography. He officially started his business, High Impact Creations LLC, in 2011.
 High Impact Creations LLC provides event photography services for corporate and educational institutions, professional headshots for executives, actors, and anyone else that is on the go. He captures modeling portfolios for new and established models, has helped many public figures by capturing images used in their print and digital promotions, and his commercial work touched many area billboards.
The Beloit Art Center is open Monday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Saturday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.