rongueri's photostream

My story as an artist began at the early age of eleven while passing time I opened up the Merriam-Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary and decided to search for the meaning of my name Guerin. Imagine my surprise when I discovered the biographical name of Jules Guerin 1866-1946 (Merriam-Webster, 2002) an American painter. For some reason, finding what I thought was a connection to a famous artist (actually no genealogical connection) gave me a direction at that time of my life and I was influenced dramatically enough to dream of pursuing artistic goals when I grew up. At such an early age, the thought of being an artist was just a cool idea, but later in life the experience returned to me as an epiphany and played a very important role in my direction in life. My artistic career began in 1984 with a tour of duty with the 49th Tactical Air Command located at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, where as a Still Photographic Specialist, I provided photography support for the Military Police, Office of Special investigation (OSI), near Alamogordo, NM. I covered forensics, domestic abuse, aircraft accident investigation, and recorded photographic evidence for the files in those cases.

During my four year enlistment I developed and honed my photographic skills, which proved to be of good use to me in later life; skills such as perceptiveness, ability to mentally grasp objects on first sight, and closely observe fine details. I also gained a keen insight and intuition for shape and dimension that helps me to see the world from many points of view. These skills have been a key element to my creativity. By being objective and unbiased toward the subject matter I am able to create focus in painting. Realizing this talent has been a key element in my growing creatively.

After my military experience, I continued as an award-winning photojournalist for five years with the Alamogordo Daily News, in Alamogordo, New Mexico. I learned about various aspects of photojournalism and how to manage a professional photography studio. I worked with a variety of subjects including sports, features, spot news, portraits, and wedding photography. I took several awards for my work including Best of Show, Photography County Fair 1992, Second Place - Sports, New Mexico Press Association 1991, First Place - Spot News, New Mexico Press Association 1990, and Second Place - Feature, New Mexico Press Association 1989.

In January 2002, I enrolled in college at the International Academy of Design & Technology in Tampa, Florida. During college my interests in the arts were rekindled. I had the opportunity to learn many creative skills and concepts, including graphic design, color theory, drawing and design, and web design.