Meet Tom R. Chambers | Photographer and Visual Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tom R. Chambers and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tom R., is there something you can share with us that those outside of the industry might not be aware of?
I have a photography background in commercial, sports, medical, and political, but I am also a digital and conceptual artist with many exhibitions to my credit.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am currently working with the pixel as Suprematist/Minimalist Art (“Pixelscapes”) and Kazimir Malevich’s “Black Square” (“Black Square Interpretations”). My “My Dear Malevich” project has received international acclaim, and it was shown as a part of the “Suprematism Infinity: Reflections, Interpretations, Explorations” exhibition in conjunction with the “100 Years of Suprematism” conference at the Atrium Gallery, Harriman Institute, Columbia University, New York City (2015).

http://tomrchambers.com/pixel_sup_min_art.html
http://tomrchambers.com/malevich.html
http://tomrchambers.com/bsi.html

I began my visual career when a friend of mine handed me a camera in 1972. I have never looked back, and because of this encounter almost 50 years ago, I now have over 100 personal exhibitions in photography and the visual arts. 

I have managed photo departments for Texas Tech University, University of Rhode Island, and the City of Providence (Rhode Island) (also personal photographer to the Mayor). I have freelanced, and taught photography in Texas, Zimbabwe (http://tomrchambers.com/tmceps.html), and China (http://zquart.tomrchambers.com/china_views_exhib.html). I have also taught the Digital/New Media Arts in China (http://tomrchambers.com/zqu.html) and India (http://tomrchambers.com/nmaatnid.html).

I am most proud of my personal project and tribute to my mother, “Mother’s 45s”. This project was exhibited in Providence, Rhode Island in 1990: http://tomrchambers.com/index-13.html  and picked up through national search as a part of the “Parents” exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio in 1992. 

I am also proud of my project, “Descendants 350”:

http://tomrchambers.com/index-27.html

This photo documentary of Descendants of many of the First Settlers of Rhode Island pays tribute to the trials and tribulations that their Ancestors were subjected to during the early to middle 1600s. It offers a unique look and study of the State’s early history as it relates to images of Descendants (contemporaries) as icons or symbols to pay tribute to and talk about their Ancestors’ (First Settlers’) contributions through text extracted from The Genealogical Dictionary of Rhode Island (and other sources). It was exhibited at ten different venues in Rhode Island as a part of the state’s 350th Anniversary Celebration (1636-1986); and it received a governor’s proclamation and later accepted as a part of the Rhode Island State Archives. 

Another project that is significant is my photo documentary of the Mucharambeyi family in Zimbabwe when I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Arts (1993-1995): 

http://tomrchambers.com/index-22.html

It was sponsored by U.S.I.S., Harare, Zimbabwe as the inaugural exhibition/event for the United States Information center (1995). The Mucharambeyi family attended, and Johnnie Carson, U.S. Ambassador to Zimbabwe, opened the exhibition. 

I have overcome challenges for continuing my personal work by always finding professional work to pay the bills, whether it be in the United States or overseas. I suppose the lesson that I have learned along the way is being persistent and always providing a quality product. My brand or story is in direct relation to global citizenry. To be effective is to understand all cultures.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
As it relates to Houston: The Rothko Chapel; The Houston Museum of Fine Arts; The Menil Collection; and the nature trails (bayous).

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
In terms of the Arts and my track record as a visual artist, it would have to be the sculptor Harvey J. Bott in Houston. I worked with him documenting his work in the 1970s when he had “Loft on Strand” in Galveston, Texas.

Website: http://tomrchambers.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chambersdva/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomrchambers/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/tomrchambers
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chambersdva
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXa5mwa6L1kktRx43VvYdgQ?view_as=subscriber
Other: Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/trchambers/albums
WordPress: https://trchambers.wordpress.com/
Behance: https://www.behance.net/trchambers
Turning Art: https://www.turningart.com/artist/tom-chambers
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/tomrchambers/_created/