Dylan Haviland – Arts & Entertainment Editor
Frank Sollitto, senior and studio arts major, was at the start of preparing for his senior exhibition show. Two of his photographs were of his fraternity brothers, who were calm and poised in the shots. One photograph was his friend collectively sitting on a worn maroon leather chair, looking in the distance with circular sunglasses and his dark blue flannel half unbuttoned. Behind the subject of the photograph the room was a filled in with dark and earthy browns, wooden walls contrasting against the pink neon beer sign and the white dangling lights.
“Shoot stuff that you love that’s what I realized,” said Sollitto. “[the project] turned into pictures of my friends and i was like ‘yep that’s what I love, I can keep doing this.’”
Sollitto considers himself both a documentary and commercial photographer. While the senior has taken photographs for most of his life, his pursuit and career in commercial photography jumpstarted in senior year of highschool. From there he has been actively participating and excelling in jobs and internships in commercial photography.
Part of his commercial work includes wedding photography which he has been shooting for eight years. He described this as one the best documentary photographing sessions, since it has a clear beginning and end.
A large part of his commercial career was when he started photographing little league, which he still shoots to this day. He fondly remembered other commercial work at his internship at WWE wrestling, as a part of the photo department describing it as “best job I ever had.”
“I sat in on a marketing meeting with Triple H and Stephanie and they where were really cool,” Sollitto said. “Really just down to earth people.”
Sollitto also participates with art in his photography, his senior show project, which will be featured in the art exhibit in Buley Library, April 21 is a tribute to older times and friendship.
“I have been in many photography classes with Frank,” said Natasha Carlbert, senior and elementary education. “He is very different and he is very driven to be different and I really like that.”
His senior art show project will reflect on his years in college and his friends.
“This, this exhibition of my talent, of my work, over the half decade of a collegiate career, and I have built this moment up in my head so much that I feel I would be doing myself a grave disservice for not making this show larger than life,” said Sollitto in his artist statement.