Infatuation: Viewfinder Stories
Three popular photographers to hold Feb. 11 exhibit
JohnJohn Montelongo, Jason Deckman and Christopher Winston are three of Temple’s most popular photographers. The trio met at 1914 Coffee House this week to discuss plans for their Feb. 11 photo exhibit at Total Elegance Creations, 15 S Main Street in Temple. David Stone photo
JohnJohn Montelongo captured this lone wheelchair next to a window while investigating the abandoned Katy Hospital in Parsons, Kansas.
This photo by Jason Deckman captures the spirit of Tiffany Zeitouni, a woman who uses horse therapy to help soldiers combat PTSD, stress, depression and other mental ailments. The photo is part of his Cowgirl exhibit.
DAVID STONE | TEMPLE DAILY TELEGRAM
Local art lovers will have multiple opportunities in the next couple weeks to see amazing pieces created by local painters and photographers. Here’s a look at what’s coming.
INFATUATION: VIEWFINDER STORIES
They call themselves “a brotherhood of photographers,” because they often run into each other while shooting events and assignments, and they support each other’s work by attending shows and exhibits.
All three — JohnJohn Montelongo, Jason Deckman and Chris Winston will be the featured artists at a Feb. 11 photography exhibition — Infatuation: Viewfinder Series — at Total Elegance Creations in Downtown Temple.
The show will begin at 7 p.m. and run until about 10. In addition to outstanding photographs, the event will feature music by Lacy, aka DJ Buried Alive, and food by You Da Man, Noodle Man. Admission will be $5.
“We are billing this as a show by photographers who have covered events and projects for the city,” Montelongo said. “We hope to make this an annual event.”
While all three men share a love for photography, their work and skill sets are very different. All three have had their work published in local periodicals such as the Temple Daily Telegram, Our Town Temple and Central Texas Living, among others.
Montelongo, a paranormal investigator, captures images from abandoned buildings and investigation locations. Winston focuses on street portraits, and Deckman is creating a series on cowgirls and horses.
Montelongo says a photo of an old mansion known as the Witch Castle in Kosse, Texas, about 55 miles east of Temple, was his most memorable photo.
“I had passed by that old house for years before I stopped and photographed it,” he said. “One day I passed through Kosse at 6 a.m., and it was just perfect. I won first place in the Texas Photography Contest and in a contest in Salado.”
Another memorable photo was captured during a trip to the Philippines, Montelongo said.
“I came upon a family of a mother and her three sons,” he said. “The mom was pregnant and bathing in the ocean with her kids around her. The family lived underneath a sidewalk in a little cave. It was very touching.”
Over the years, Montelongo’s work has been featured on several magazine covers, and the popular photographer also had a stint as a contract photographer for the Dallas Cowboys.
Winston said he has photographed many festivals and concerts, but some of his most impactful photos were images caught at memorial services and protests.
“I covered rallies for Michael Dean (a Temple man shot and killed by police on Dec. 2, 2019) and Vanessa Guillen (a Fort Hood soldier found murdered near Little River), and a gun-control protest,” he said. “My wife and I were both career Army, and Vanessa’s killing touched me deeply.”
“But, maybe my most memorable photo was of a young girl coming out of a Downtown Temple coffee shop during First Friday,” he said. “I shot the photo in black and white.”
“An event I shoot every year is Cupid’s Undie Run in Austin,” Winston said. The event features people running in their underwear to raise money for charities.
Deckman, an Army veteran who works as a planner for the city of Temple, will be presenting photos with a cowgirl theme. It’s all part of a project he has been working on with Tiffany Zeitouni, a woman who uses horse therapy to help soldiers combat PTSD, stress, depression and other mental ailments.
“I use images to tell her story,” Deckman said this week. “It’s a story about the relationship between cowgirls and their horses and the friendship between Tiffany and myself. We work together — its a collaboration and we both bring a lot to the table. I want to support her work, and any sales I have from the show will be donated to Hoofbeat for Heroes.”
“This has been a discovery for me,” he said. “I wasn’t a horse person growing up — it’s new. But this project has given me the opportunity to take unexpected photos.”
Like Montelongo and Winston, Deckman is a decorated photographer. He is a past winner of the Community Treasures photo contest held every year, and his winning shot was taken inside the Temple Railroad & Heritage Museum.
The three photographers will each have about a dozen photos in the show. Work by local amateur photographers also will be included in the exhibit. To have your photos considered, contact Montelongo or Artist 2 Artist Showcase through Facebook.
THE ART OF TJ OLIVARES
A Temple native who began his art journey by dabbling in comic books will be the featured artist at a Feb. 4 art show at Oak Park United Methodist Church, 5505 S 31st in Temple. The show will be from 1 to 5 p.m.
TJ Olivares, a Temple High School grad who now resides in Nolanville, specializes in colored pencil, ball-point pen and acrylic paints. He works as a graphic designer at Heights Printing in Harker Heights.
“I grew up in Temple, and I got started in art by drawing comic book frames,” he said. “I would copy the artist and get as close to the original as I could. I also liked to draw my favorite football players.”
“Growing up, I wanted to become a comic book artist,” he said. “I’m a big fan of the Marvel Universe — Wolverine and the X-Men were my favorites. Eventually I started creating my own characters and drawing my own comics.”
Olivares’ passion for art grew with classes at Temple College under the direction of instructor Michael Donahue, who served as TC’s gallery director from 1979 to 2018. Donahue is still affiliated with the school’s art department.
Olivares is affiliated with several local art organizations, including Artist 2 Artist Showcase and Snack & Sketch.
“Occasionally I will set up during First Friday with the Artist 2 Artist folks,” he said. “I put up a booth and show my work — paintings and prints. I do some Cinco de Mayo and El Día de los Muertos paintings for those events.”
“I’ve been painting all my life, but about four years ago I decided to start showing my work,” he said. “In addition to First Friday events, my work has been on exhibit at the Cultural Activities Center, the Temple Civic Theatre and a gallery in Waco.”
“I’m part of the Snack & Sketch group that meets in Temple. We get together for lunch and draw superheroes. I still love that comic book style.”
The Oak Park UMC show is being presented by Koollectibles by Heric, a local business that specializes in collectibles of all kinds. Heather Mueller Davis, who co-owns Koollectibles, said she is a big fan of Olivares’ work and wanted to help him grow as an artist.
“TJ’s art is striking and has a definite style that pulls you in whether it is the subject or the piece, the magical use of colors, the starkness of his ball-point pen drawings or the meticulous details found throughout his color pencil pieces or gorgeous acrylic paintings.”
“He is a humble artist whose work needs recognition,” Davis said. “His work would be a perfect fit for any collection.”
The art show is free to attend.
STERLE WORK AT ART A LA CARTE
Works by popular Temple artist Susan Sterle are on exhibit at Art a la Carte, a collective exhibition by members of the Professional Artists of Central Texas.
The show runs through March 11 at The Art Center of Waco and will feature many of the top artists in Central Texas.
Sterle is known for her art depicting animals and country landscapes.
A walk through her studio — Sterle Fine Art Studio — is dominated by images of pigs, horses, cows and especially dogs.
“Over the years I’ve been commissioned by people who want paintings of their pets,” she said. “I love animals and it’s something I really enjoy.”
Art has dominated Sterle’s life — she started painting in fifth grade — and she received an art degree from the University of Texas before launching a 35-year career as a graphics designer.
EXHIBITS AT THE CAC
Artwork by more than a dozen Central Texas creators will be on display at the Cultural Activities Center through Feb. 24. The current exhibits include work by Rhiannon Taff and Freedman studios, plus drawings by students of University of Mary Hardin-Baylor professor John Hancock.
Also on display is Artists of the CAC, and the exhibits feature works by Hershall Seals, Stephanie Chambers, Jesse Wyman, Lindsay Gabriel, Marilyn Ritchie, Mary Black Pearson, Betsi Chamlee, Shawn Knuckles, Andrew Bill and more.
Gallery hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday, Wednesday and Friday; 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m., Tuesday and Thursday; and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday.
Cow in the Morning Mist, a painting by Susan Sterle, is on exhibit through March 11 at Art a la Carte, a collective exhibition by members of the Professional Artists of Central Texas.
