Jordan Beck | Daily Press Corey Kelly, of Marquette, speaks about her artistic influences during a panel lecture for “Photography; Through a Woman’s Lens” at Bay College Thursday.

ESCANABA — Bay College is celebrating Women’s History Month with the art exhibition “Photography; Through a Woman’s Lens.” A panel lecture featuring the six women whose photographs are being displayed in the exhibition took place at the college Thursday afternoon.

Bay College Arts Instructor Kristine Granger, who curated “Photography; Through a Woman’s Lens,” said this marks the third art exhibition held at the college in honor of Women’s History Month. She noted public reaction to the exhibition has been good.

“I think that to show photography through a woman’s lens sort of breaks that stereotype of how that should be,” she said.

Granger said this message is emphasized by the wide stylistic range of the photographs on display as part of the exhibition.

“It is extremely varied,” she said.

The artists who created the photographs had a chance to speak about their work during Thursday’s panel lecture. The lecture began with a presentation by Corey Kelly of Marquette.

According to Kelly, her photos are inspired by the concept of “suspension of disbelief.”

“That concept informs my work, and it’s something I’m really fascinated with and that I try to work with,” she said.

She noted her photos are also inspired by images and narratives from the Victorian and Edwardian eras.

“It seemingly gave you that feeling of there being kind of a different world right on top of the one you already know,” she said.

Rebecca Nolan, who currently lives in Savannah, Ga., said her work at Bay comes from her roadside photography collection “American Byways.”

“I still, today, primarily photograph in rural places,” she said.

Nolan said her work has been influenced by her upbringing in southeastern Wisconsin.

“About six years ago, I decided that growing up in Wisconsin maybe is the reason that I do everything, but it took me 30 years to figure that out after I’d left Wisconsin,” she said.

Marquette resident and Austrian emigrant Christine Saari spoke about the photographs included in her “Family Album” project. The photographs incorporate a variety of mixed-media elements.

“I used a lot of alternative processes in doing this work,” Saari said.

“Family Album” was largely inspired by letters written by members of Saari’s family.

“I figured the … best way to share them was through a visual means,” Saari said.

Rachel Storck, of Marquette, spoke about her photography collection, “Emote.” Photographs taken by Storck are being displayed in the Hartwig Gallery.

“The goal of ‘Emote’ was to put my mental health first,” Storck said.

Storck tasked herself with identifying emotions she feels and using abstract photography to represent them.

“My aim in photographing abstractly is to create a sense, or a feel,” she said.

Aimee Tomasek, associate professor of art and art department chairperson for Valparaiso University, spoke about her collection “I won a blue ribbon at the county fair” during the panel lecture. The collection, which is currently about halfway done, features portraits of children involved with 4-H.

“The goal is to photograph the same kids every single year, following them for a 10-year period,” Tomasek said.

The organization holds personal significance to Tomasek.

“I spent 10 years in 4-H, going to county and state fairs as an exhibitor and as a spectator,” she said.

Granger spoke about her own collection featured in “Photography; Through a Woman’s Lens,” which is titled “poetics of space.” Granger said many of her earliest photographs were self-portraits, which she used to “anchor” herself.

“I had to take the photographs — I had to witness or tell my truth or find myself,” she said.

In contrast, “poetics of space” focuses on photographs of intimate spaces.

“It is me honoring myself and my own space, and filling that space,” Granger said.

Bay College freshman Laura Hallfrisch, who attended the panel lecture, said she appreciated the different types of images on display in “Photography; Through a Woman’s Lens.”

“It was really interesting to see how each person had their own style that reflected their interests,” she said.

Kaitlin Kamradt, who is also a freshman at Bay, said she liked hearing about how the photographers featured in this exhibition developed as artists.

“I thought it was amazing. It’s really impactful to see how these women have grown and see that through their photographs,” she said.

“Photography; Through a Woman’s Lens” will be on display at Bay College through April 4.