Campus to feature photos with farm focus

SUNY Cobleskill will display the work of Oneonta-based photographer Wesley Bernard at the college’s Grosvenor Art Gallery on Thursday, Feb. 27 from 4 to 6 p.m.

The exhibit is free and open to the public from Feb. 27 until April 9. There will be light refreshments and, for those 21 and older, a cash bar.

Bernard’s exhibit, “To Grow a Farmer,” will showcase farmers in upstate New York, focusing on those around the Oneonta area where he teaches, according to a SUNY Cobleskill media release. “It was fascinating to see people’s devotion to want to farm,” Bernard said. “It’s a profession that we need.”

Half of the proceeds from Bernard’s photographs are given to the farmers he took pictures of, he said. Many that he’s photographed have told Bernard they’ll be at the exhibit, and he said he’s looking forward to seeing them. 

Featured farmers include Angelika Underwood of Underwood Ranch in Unadilla, Jody Reed of Reed Maple Farm in Hamden, Patrick Rider of Greenane Farms in Meridale and Nicole Gillikin of Homegrown Farmstead in Delhi, according to Bernard’s website.

Bernard is an assistant professor of photography at SUNY Oneonta who teaches classes on film/darkroom, digital photography and history of photography, according to his website. He said he plans to focus on retired farmers for his next photography project. 

“I’m fascinated with why people would stick with it,” Bernard said. “Thank God they still do, or we wouldn’t be eating.”

Shweta Karikehalli, staff writer, can be reached at skarikehalli@thedailystar.com or 607-441-7221. Follow her @DS_ShwetaK on Twitter.