"Greenleaf, WI," by David Graham. The photographer is the featured artist in the Besse Gallery on the Bay College Escanaba Campus. (Submitted photo)

ESCANABA — A reception and artist talk featuring photographer David Graham has been set for 2 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 9, in the Besse Gallery at Bay College, where his “American Dream” exhibit is on display.

In his bio, Graham is described as “a photographer living in multiple worlds.” First and foremost, he is a fine art photographer creating his own work, which has been collected by museums such as the Museum of Modern Art in NYC, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Philadelphia Museum of Art and books, including “American Beauty” (Aperture 1987), “Only in America” (Knopf, 1991), “Taking Liberties” (Pond Press, 2001), “Alone Together” (Pond Press, 2003), “Almost Paradise” (Pond Press, 2008) and “In Plain Sight” (EYESHOT 2022). He is represented by PDNB Gallery in Dallas, Etherton Gallery in Tucson and Laurence Miller Gallery in New York City.

But Graham has also worked in the freelance world, shooting for magazines that include The New York Times Magazine, Fortune, Forbes and Details. Additionally, he has shot ad campaigns, most notably for Mastercard.

Graham has taught photography at the School of Visual Arts in NYC, Sarah Lawrence College and the International Center of Photography in NYC. He has retired from teaching and is a professor emeritus at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia.

In 2021, Graham relocated to northeast Wisconsin. Together with his wife, Terri Warpinski, they run a full-time studio and are co-owners of newARTSpace, a gallery in De Pere.

“I have been obsessed with a lifelong search across the United States for the odd, unusual and striking since I first turned to color photography in 1979,” Graham said in his artist’s statement. “This quest explores how Americans express themselves through their environments — whether public or private, whether they are by the side of the road or in the backyard. The result is a series of photographs which delve into the complex weave of image, symbol and reality that we see as America at its finest. From coast to coast, I have put together what I hope is an engaging and joyous collection of photographs that show what it means to be an American.”

The Besse Center South Gallery is free and open to the public. It is at the entrance to the Learning Resource Center on Bay’s Escanaba Campus.