arts & life
e x h i b i t
In Living
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Suzanne Chessler | Contributing Writer
Steven Tapper’s
photographs — on
view in Birmingham’s
‘Our Town’ —
celebrate what’s right
with the world.
details
The “Our Town Art Show & Sale”
takes place Oct.13 -16 at the
Community House in Birmingham.
There is no admission fee Oct.
14-16. The event kicks off with
an Art in Vogue Opening Night
Party Thursday, Oct. 13, including
an awards program, hors
d’oeuvres, entertainment, fashion/
art presentations and the first
opportunity to preview
and purchase art. $75-$250.
(248) 644-5832; tchserves.org.
46 October 13 • 2016
S
teven Tapper, while vaca-
tioning Up North, went
for an early-morning
bike ride.
He pedaled down a side road
not knowing where it would lead
and came across an unattended
flower stand with bouquets sold
on the honor system.
Impressed by the beauty of the
petals and the richness of the
colors, he pulled out a camera —
he always keeps one with him —
and clicked.
The resulting image is one
of three he will be showing at
the 31st-annual “Our Town Art
Show & Sale,” a juried all-media
art show being held Oct. 13-16
at the Community House in
Birmingham. This year’s event
will showcase some 400 pieces by
165 Michigan artists working in
diverse media.
“I am inspired by little things
that often go unnoticed,” Tapper
says about the works he will have
on view, including an opening
waterlily and wildflowers from
his own garden. “Some of my
best photographs have come
from right outside my doorstep.
“Art in nature and the infinite
variations of color, pattern, light
and shadow are sources for my
design inspiration. Mindful of
my surroundings and creative
possibilities, I take time to
become an observer, selecting
and then blending the use of
equipment, technology and pre-
sentation.”
Tapper, vice president of sales
and design at Tapper’s Fine
Jewelry, recognized an interest
in art as an elementary student
in Detroit and began with clay.
He attended what has become
the College for Creative Studies
before graduating in fine arts
and education from Eastern
Michigan University.
“My interest in photography
began at Eastern, where my
dorm mate had a darkroom,”
recalls Tapper, who gave the
school’s undergraduate com-
mencement speech and received
an honorary doctorate of fine
arts degree in 2010. “I learned
about the processes and saw
them as magical.
“I asked to go with him while
he was shooting pictures, and he
allowed me to take some. When
I looked through the viewfinder,
I narrowed my vision and had a
frame. All of sudden, I began the
process of focusing, composing
and capturing. I realized this was
a way of expressing myself.”
Tapper, 65, who taught in
Sanilac County schools before
entering the jewelry business
almost 40 years ago, relates to
all kinds of photographic sub-
jects, including people, religious
iconography and architecture.
His work, captured with Canon
digital equipment, has been
exhibited at the Janice Charach
Gallery in West Bloomfield and
the Detroit Artists Market.
“I exercise at the Jewish
Community Center and, one
day, when they were building the