Artist Statement
Ann Mitchell is an artist and educator living in Southern California. With a BFA in Photography from Art Center College of Design, she worked as an award-winning advertising and editorial photographer for over a decade. She then left commercial photography to pursue her own imagery, complete her MFA from Claremont Graduate University and is currently Chair of Art & Photography at Long Beach City College.
Her photographs have been included in a large number of solo and group exhibitions and she is active as an organizer of photo-related events. Her work has been reproduced in a number of publications and in Fall 2007 Balcony Press released Austin Val Verde: Impressions of a Montecito Masterpiece, a monograph of her work at the historic site. Ann Mitchell continues to teach and pursue her photographic interests in structures and how we interact with our environments.
Process Statement
My imagery is grounded in the landscape I grew up in - the West. For generations my family has farmed and there is almost a genetic imprint to my desire to explore how we use the land and the structures we leave behind. Profoundly influenced by artists such as Robert Frank, Walker Evans and Ed Ruscha I attempts to find the poetry in the everyday landscape of our urban, suburban and rural environments.
I've selected several images from two series: American Triptych and Multiple Viewings.
