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Tema Stauffer

@temastauffer

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Art & Design @etsu
Official Instagram of East Tennessee State University’s Art and Design Department
BA • BFA • MFA

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TONIGHT: 5+5 SLIDESHOW with TEMA STAUFFER - Our 5+5 slideshow series continues this evening from 6:30-7:15pm ET, as photographer @temastauffer will share five photographs by other photographers who have influenced her, and five of her own that have been pivotal in her creative journey.

Tema’s work traces what history leaves behind in the American landscape. Her first book, “Upstate,” documents the industrial legacy of Hudson, New York, and her second, “Southern Fiction,” follows the literary legacy of the American South. In her current project, “Wonderlands,” Tema’s camera focuses on tourism, religion, and folklore in Southern Appalachia. Her work has been exhibited widely at museums, galleries, and universities throughout the South. Tema teaches photography at East Tennessee State University.

The 5+5 slideshows are part of our Fall ’26 event series, and there’s still time to sign up. Tema’s presentation is the third of 11 events. Screen recordings are available to all Fall ’26 subscribers.

In addition to Tema, guest photographers this fall include Matthew Pillsbury, Elinor Carucci, Maureen Drennan, Thomas Holton, Stacy Mehrfar, Jason Langer, Matthew Baum, Qiana Mestrich, Oliver Farshi, and Charles Traub.

Link in bio to learn more about Tema, our Fall ’26 event series, and how to subscribe.

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Link in Bio to sign up for our Substack newsletter for updates on events, educational opportunities, and the PhotoPhlo app, now in beta.
 Fall ‘26 Events Guest Artists:
 @maureendrennen
@thomas_holton_photography
@elinorcarucci
@jlangerphotos
@screenlives
@temastauffer
@qianamestrich
@stacymehrfar
@matthew.baum
@charlestraub
@oliverblank

#PhotoPhlo #PhotoEducation #PhotoCommunity #PhotoLecture

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5+5: TEMA STAUFFER - This fall, we’re happy to include Tema Stauffer among the presenting artists in our upcoming 5+5 slideshow series, kicking off October 6.

Tema’s work traces what history leaves behind in the American landscape. Her first book, “Upstate,” documents the industrial legacy of Hudson, New York, and her second, “Southern Fiction,” follows the literary legacy of the American South. In her current project, “Wonderlands,” Tema’s camera focuses on tourism, religion, and folklore in Southern Appalachia. These series have been exhibited widely at museums, galleries, and universities throughout the South. Tema teaches photography at East Tennessee State University.

In her slideshow, Tema will share five photographs by other photographers that have influenced her, and five of her own that have been pivotal in her creative journey, offering insight into how she thinks about photography.

@temastauffer presents online on Tuesday, October 20, 6:30-7:30pm ET. 5+5 Slideshows start on October 6.

Link in Bio to learn more about our Fall ‘26 event series, our guest photographers, and how to subscribe.

-

Link in Bio to sign up for our Substack newsletter for updates on events, educational opportunities, and the PhotoPhlo app, now in beta.

 Fall ‘26 Events Guest Artists:
 @maureendrennen
@thomas_holton_photography
@elinorcarucci
@jlangerphotos
@screenlives
@temastauffer
@qianamestrich
@stacymehrfar
@matthew.baum
@charlestraub
@oliverblank

#PhotoPhlo #PhotoEducation #PhotoCommunity #PhotoLecture #PhotoPhloApp

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5+5 SLIDESHOWS STARTS OCTOBER 6 - 5+5 is a Tuesday evening (ET) slideshow series in which guest photographers share five photos by other photographers that have influenced them, and five of their own that have been pivotal in their creative development.

Fall ‘26 presenting photographers include Tema Stauffer, Matthew Pillsbury, Elinor Carucci, Qiana Mestrich, Thomas Holton, Maureen Drennan, Stacy Mehrfar, Matthew Baum, and Jason Langer.

Join us to learn more about how these photographers think about photography, both their own work and that of the artists that have inspired them along the way.

Link in Bio for the 5+5 schedule, photographer bios, subscription information, and the rest of our Fall ‘26 events.

@maureendrennen
@thomas_holton_photography
@elinorcarucci
@jlangerphotos
@screenlives
@temastauffer
@qianamestrich
@stacymehrfar
@matthew.baum

–

Link in Bio to sign up for our Substack newsletter for updates on events, educational opportunities, and the PhotoPhlo app, now in beta.

#PhotoPhlo #PhotoEducation #PhotoCommunity #PhotoEvent #PhotoPhloApp

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It was a whirlwind of a weekend! On Thursday I headed down to Auburn to help out with Type High Day festivities in the printmaking studio with my pal @deighton_abrams. After a quick stop at The Jule to check out the exhibits, I ran over to AU to take a tour of the art dept in Biggin Hall with Deighton, and then we headed over for a tour of the graphic design dept in Wallace Hall with pal @rjfinkel.

Friday was Type High Day (.918 inch is the standard height of letterpress type in the US). We started the day in the library before heading to the print studio in the afternoon. The students and guests all seemed to have a good time playing with the letterpress type! It was great catching up with @chuckhemard and help him make a couple of prints!

On Saturday, I ran down to the Do Good Fund Gallery in Columbus before driving over to Zebulon to check out this year’s Slow Exposures. Caught up with a few friends (not pictured: @octaviasharpphotography @jimmy.nicholson.photographer @iammikebaker and @willbhill) and listened to an artist talk by Tema Stauffer. I then high-tailed it to LaGrange to see my photo in the Southeast Regional Biennial.

Deighton and I were classmates in one of @sydprint’s last printmaking classes at Clemson. It was nice to see one of my favorite screen prints hanging in Deighton’s house. The project prompt was “Sublime”, and I took a photo of the pond in Notasulga, AL where my dad was baptized as a kid and added a little starter fire. 😄

Headed home on Sunday by way of Finster Fest at Paradise Gardens. I need to go back and do a proper tour! It was a busy and fun weekend!

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FALL ‘26 EVENT SERIES - We’re pleased to announce our Fall ‘26 calendar, starting up on October 6. The centerpiece is 5+5, a Tuesday evening (ET) slideshow series in which guest photographers share five photos by other photographers that have influenced them, and five of their own that have been pivotal in their creative development.

Presenting photographers include Tema Stauffer, Matthew Pillsbury, Elinor Carucci, Qiana Mestrich, Thomas Holton, Maureen Drennan, Stacy Mehrfar, Matthew Baum, and Jason Langer.

Alongside 5+5, the lineup includes two standalone lectures: Oliver Farshi, on his long-term project Last Days: Photographing End of Life, and Charles Traub, photographer, educator, and longtime champion of the medium, sharing work from his 60-year career.

To bring this event series to life, we are offering access to all Fall ‘26 events and screen recordings for a subscription fee of $50. You also have the option of fall access plus a discounted portfolio review with PhotoPhlo founder Matthew Baum.

Your participation directly benefits the guest artists and offers support to PhotoPhlo as we expand our calendar of events and educational opportunities, and continue to develop the soon-to-launch PhotoPhlo app.

Link in Bio for our Fall ‘26 event calendar, photographer bios, and subscription information.

—-

Link in Bio to sign up for our Substack newsletter for updates on events, educational opportunities, and the PhotoPhlo app, now in beta.

@maureendrennen
@thomas_holton_photography
@elinorcarucci
@jlangerphotos
@screenlives
@temastauffer
@qianamestrich
@stacymehrfar
@matthew.baum
@charlestraub
@oliverblank

#PhotoPhlo #PhotoEducation #PhotoCommunity #PhotoEvent #PhotoPhloApp

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A story that speaks for itself, August 28th - 30th Happy Birthday @maripaworld !!!

Photo credits:
@temastauffer @beckyduffyhill.creative @llamawheeler13 @maebon11

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Just one more day to catch Tema Stauffer: Wonderlands! This fabulous exhibition ends tomorrow at 5:00pm.

Images:
@temastauffer
Pink Motel, Cherokee, NC, 2022, Archival pigment print, various sizes

Wigwam Hotel, Cherokee, NC, 2022, Archival pigment print, various sizes

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My dear friend @temastauffer has an exhibition at @traceymorgangallery in Asheville for two more days.

Tema Stauffer: Wonderlands

The exhibition is titled after Charles Baxter’s Wonderlands: Essays on the Life of Literature. Stauffer’s interest lies in places that evoke wonder, imbued with traces of historical upheaval, which carry into the present. Wonderlands is a portrait of a region where past and present are deeply intertwined.

(Scroll for remaining captions and an interview excerpt)

Boiled PNuts and Pork Rind Stand, US 74, NC, 2022

Red Barn, Madison County, NC, 2023

Warrior Motel, Whittier, NC, 2022

Bee Tree Christian Church, Swannanoa, NC, 2025

Bee Tree Christian Church, Swannanoa, NC, 2025 (detail)

Lloyd Chandler’s Barn, Sodom, NC, 2023

From an interview on Diana Stoll’s substack (link in bio).

DS: You’ve also looked at some of the more poetic histories of this region, like Lloyd Chandler’s barn in Madison County. Tell us about who he was.

TS: Lloyd Chandler was a folk musician in the early 20th century. The barn is set up in the mountains in Madison County, in a community called Sodom (now known as Revere), a place that was a hub for traditional Appalachian music. Chandler claimed that his 1916 ballad “O, Death,” was inspired by a conversation he had with Death in this barn. According to the story, Chandler was drunk on moonshine, spiraling toward his own destruction. He pleaded and bargained with Death to spare him for another year . . . and when he awoke from the vision, he was a changed man. He became a Free Will Baptist preacher, delivering messages of transformation and salvation in Appalachia in the 1920s and often performing “O, Death.” The ballad, popular in his day, reached even wider audiences through its inclusion on the soundtracks to Barbara Kopple’s 1976 documentary Harlan County USA and the Coen brothers’ 2000 movie O Brother, Where Art Thou?

The barn on Burton Cove Road is very remote, and there’s an old cemetery where Chandler’s relatives are buried. It’s an incredible area to spend time in . . . but also a bit eerie.

DS: I love the black, black of the doorway, where I suppose Death went in and out.“

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Such a sweet evening in Asheville for @temastauffer’s artist talk and reception for “Wonderlands” at @traceymorgangallery! So thankful to have Tema as a professor and for all the support she gives us grad students. @etsumfa 🤍 Also sooo glad my good friend and fellow grad student @chunruzzzz joined. 🫂🥹🩷

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🔗 in bio
+++
Full interview between writer/editor @dcsletusgothen & photographer @temastauffer!
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excerpt:
Diana Stoll: There’s a quote from Charles Baxter about his idea of “wonderlands”: “When the landscape has more character than the characters who inhabit it.”

Tema Stauffer: I love that. And that’s very relevant to what I’m trying to say. Also, there’s nothing in this whole series, or in Southern Fiction, that’s a completely natural landscape. They all have some reference to human lives lived there. There’s a structure, or structures, in every picture. There’s something in each picture that communicates something about the socioeconomic groups or the cultures of these communities.
+++
#artist
#writer
#community

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Join us Tuesday evening for an exhibition walkthrough and artist talk with @temastauffer
Stauffer will discuss her series and current exhibition “Wonderlands”.

A closing reception will begin at 5:30pm with the talk at 6:00

In this series Stauffer documented sites relevant to Appalachian figures, such as Nina Simone and Lloyd
Chandler, she challenges romanticized notions, focuses on underrepresented histories of the region, and highlights the contradictions and complexities that shape its identity.

Images:
Nina Simone’s Childhood Home, Tryon, NC, 2023

Lloyd Chandler’s Barn, Sodom, NC, 2023

Remnants, Lloyd Chandler’s Barn, Sodom, NC, 2023
All images are Archival Pigment Prints, available in three sizes.

#appalachia #ninasimone #lloydchandler #wonderlands

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Y'all know and love 4 decades of Scandals, so let's create a time capsule! Hoping to host this event at @q_hall_avl and we want all your Scandals stories and memorabilia (to keep forever or take on temporary loan to digitize). Queer history is what you remember and record, so be part of the preservation. Check out our archive at wncarchive.com. Search our oral histories by keyword, and you can listen to all the Scandals stories. What can you add?!

#oralhistory #queerAppalachia #lgbtqia #gaybars #Asheville

We are the South.

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