A tribute to a great teacher and friend

June 9th, 2013

Filed under Art, Life, People, Photography, Uncategorized

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I just  had the pleasure of participating in an photographic invitational gallery showing this weekend at the  University of Northern Colorado honoring one of my professors . It was called The Dennis Morimoto 47 Invitational.

The most impressive part of that title is the 47. My professor Dennis Morimoto dedicated 47 years of teaching, enlightening and inspiring students. That’s phenomenal.

Dennis  was my industrial arts- graphic arts professor at UNC. I was a wide-eyed sophomore trying very hard to find my career path. I had rejected or turned from several earlier paths of interest. I chose to pursue a career in journalism. My minor however was in industrial arts as the university referred to in that day.

A concentration in design, photography, layout and print making were the main focus. It complimented my main focus of journalism because in my still developing mind I thought if I ever became involved in a newspapers or publications it would be to my advantage to know about photography, design and of course print making and presses.

His courses weren’t easy but he made the curriculum fun and the end result made for better grades and in my mind a more effective way of storing valuable information I would certainly use at a later date in a future career. And in fact it did just that. There very first job I had a week from graduating demanded many of those skills.

The show itself was comprised of students Morimoto considered to be  influential and reflective of his tutelage in his  47 years  of instruction at the university  and those  he felt had an impact on his career. The truth of the matter is he had an enormous impact on my education and career path.

I can honestly say he instructed me at a pivotal point of my pursuit of higher education  and a career and provided a major impact.

We all go through a period of  ife where certain people open your heart, inspire you and provide  the catalyst to do good things. Dennis was one of those individuals.

Dennis gave each of us a few small momentos for participating at the exhibit. But the one that touched my heart and will forever be a keepsake for me was the small inscription he wrote in a personalized show catalogue.

It said: ” Eric- Thank you for sharing your great images and for being a very special part of my career.”

Wow, talk about tugging at the heart. The fact of the matter is it’s just the other way around.

These are the photographs I chose for the exhibit. Proceeds from the exhibit are going to a newly established Dennis Morimoto Scholarship fund for aspiring visual artists.

Thailand Salt Harvest

Thailand Salt Harvest

Manning Intro

Manning Intro

 

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