Chris Ortiz
Documentary, Environmental Portraiture, Concert Photography, College Professor
MFA
Originally from Lawrence, Kansas (b. 1982), I have had a life-long relationship with photography starting at the age of six. Learning the basics art through his step-father, I quickly developed a love for the camera, then print making, ceramics, painting and art history throughout the rest of my life. Specializing in music and documentary photography since 1998, I have made it my life goal to blend the two into one style of art photography, telling the story of the music world, both from the musician’s stand point and from the crowds, shooting in both digital and medium format black and white film.
I made it a point to constantly have some medium of art throughout his life. Ultimately, I decided to pursue a bachelors in Art History at Baker University in Baldwin City, Kansas. While still at Baker University, I was early accepted to work on his Master of Fine Arts degree in photography at the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), completing my MFA in November of 2017.
Then at SCAD, my work focused mostly on Documentary photography while also working with the University of Kansas on the major project Portraits of Latinx Identity. This project was so successful that the university has applied for two more additional grants to expand the project further. His other project, Living with Sam (MFA Thesis) has been used to bring to the public eye illnesses of Depression, Anxiety, and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (or PTSD) that people deal with every day. Both collections were well received by both exhibition goers and media. Since graduation, my focus has been back in film and the dark room, working on his punk rock documentary project, We Are All We Have Tonight, that includes both photographs and narratives from those who sat for the photos. The narrations are the sitter’s personal story about their lives within the Punk Rock scene.
When I am not behind my camera, I often can be found out hiking Arizona (where I now live), enjoying a cup of coffee with a book, or enjoying time with friends and family.
