On Sept. 5, the Samek Art Museum hosted an opening reception for the Summer Salon II exhibition in the Samek Gallery of the Elaine Langeone Center. The reception successfully kicked off the University’s Arts Everywhere Festival. The event included relaxing music, hors d’oeuvres, and great company observing artwork.

In Summer Salon II, the exhibit that has occupied the museum’s space since May 10, the Samek Art Museum displays a series of rarely seen photographs deriving from their extensive collection. These selections, produced by six artists between 1959 and 2004, demonstrate the constantly evolving art of photography. Advancement from the rigid requirements of early film technology has led to changes in how artists capture an image. The ability to instantly document an image gave rise to the “street photo,” revealing a desire to portray life as it is happening.

Rather than just taking stagnant photos of posed individuals, the camera now finds beauty with scenes in constant motion as well. The Samek Art Museum’s director, Richard Rinehart, finds the concept of the “moving image” quite intriguing. Discussing his observations of these photos from the past few months, Rinehart points to a photo taken by artist Garry Winogrand and explains how the figures almost move off the print, “suggesting a constantly moving eye and the temporality of the scene.”

It is also important to note that each photographer produces bodies of work focused on different themes. Andy Warhol, for example, captures images of himself as well as other people in the midst of the social scene. Other artists, like Winogrand and Larry Clark, literally take to the street to find inspiration from everyday people and youth cultures.

“The pictures are very raw. They force you to react to their subject matter and reveal to you more about yourself than you previously knew before,” Kasey Bailey ’16 said.

The Summer Salon II exhibition will remain on display until Sept. 21. Until then, those who engage in this showcase will see a variety of photographs that show many enjoyable facets of life.