UMSL student Katharine Stucker poured paint into an aquarium and used a strobe light to photograph the paint as it moved through the water. Her photos are on display at Gallery FAB.

For her senior thesis exhibit, Sarah Zimmerle tapped friends, family and even some strangers, who all journeyed down to her basement to mug for her personal photo booth, which she’d constructed of PVC piping and black cloth.

Dozens of her photo strips measuring four feet high will be showcased as part of the senior thesis exhibit by photography students at the University of Missouri­–St. Louis.

The exhibit will open on April 1 in Gallery FAB at UMSL. An opening reception for the exhibition titled “Shenanigans,” will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. on April 4. The exhibit will be on display through April 12. Admission is free and the exhibit is open to the public.

The senior thesis in photography exhibition will feature work by six photography students of Dan Younger, professor of art at UMSL, including Kirk Helfrich, Jeff Higgins, Jennifer Stodgell, Katharine Stucker, Nikki Vahle and Sarah Zimmerle.

Below is a synopsis of the various photography exhibits that will be on display:

• Katharine Stucker’s photography is messy business. She makes her photos by pouring paint into an aquarium and using a strobe light to capture the paint as it moves in the water.

• Kirk Helfrich transforms the ordinary into the extraordinary. He takes beautiful photos of his great-grandfather’s tools, which he inherited.

• Jennifer Stodgell draws from a wedding photography trend called “Trash the Dress” for her photos. That’s where brides, once married, destroy their dresses for the camera. Stodgell poured paint on ripped and also burnt dresses. Some of the dresses will be on display.

• Jeff Higgins takes photos of friends conversing across the table from him as he makes pictures. After taping the conversations, he pulls a quote from the talk, which he puts under each picture.

• Nikki Vahle’s photos capture parts of St. Louis architecture that are both interesting for their content, and also for the color and design of the picture.

Gallery FAB is at 201 Fine Arts Building at UMSL, Florissant Road and Rosedale Drive in Normandy, Mo. Gallery hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The photo exhibit is sponsored by the Department of Art and Art History at UMSL.

Click here or below to view a video that shows a time lapse of the installation of  the senior’s Thesis Exhibition.