معرفی
Leigh Merrill is a Professor in the Department of Art within the College of Humanities, Social Sciences and Arts at East Texas A&M University. She teaches courses including Photography Appreciation (PHO 130), Advanced Digital Photography (PHO 350), and Photography Seminar (PHO 450). Her office is located in Art 104 and she can be contacted at Leigh.Merrill@etamu.edu.
Leigh Merrill holds an MFA in Studio Art from Mills College (2009) and a BFA in Studio Art with a concentration in Photography from the University of New Mexico (2001).
Merrill is an American Artist from the American Southwest who creates digitally collaged photographic and video works that explore our contemporary surroundings and the impact of desire, simulation and perception on the human-made landscape. Her artistic practice involves culling through thousands of individual photographs and videos of architecture and landscaping, which she digitally assembles to create spaces that do not exist. Through metaphor and illusion, her work reveals both the desire and simulacrum present around us and within photography itself. Merrill's research interests include Fine Art Photography, Contemporary Art Practice, Photographic Perception, and Digitally Manipulated Imagery.
Merrill's work has been exhibited throughout the United States and Europe, with notable solo and group exhibitions at The Fries Museum in the Netherlands, FotoFest International in Houston, Liliana Bloch Gallery in Dallas, and Pictura Gallery in Bloomington. Her creations are part of permanent collections at the Museum of Texas Tech University, the University of North Texas Library Print Study Collection, the City of Phoenix, and the California Institute of Integral Studies.
- Museum of Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX
- University of North Texas Library Print Study Collection, Denton, TX
- City of Phoenix, Phoenix, AZ
- California Institute of Integral Studies
Her work has been featured in prestigious publications including Afterimage Magazine, The Dallas Morning News, The Washington Post, and The New York Times. Notable publications about her work include 'Leigh Merrill: The Manner of Desires' by Peter S. Briggs, 'Photographer Leigh Merrill wants to adjust your focus' by Danielle Avram, and inclusion in 'Theories in Digital Composite Photographs: 12 Artists and Their Work' (Focal Press 2019).
As an educator, Merrill emphasizes the importance of one-on-one interactions with students in smaller class settings, helping them find their individual creative voices within the field of photography. She notes that East Texas A&M has 'a long history of excellence in photography – both as a fine art and commercial practice.' Her teaching philosophy centers on engaging with students' individual work to help them achieve their goals and find their unique artistic expression.
