“Huang, Jackson, & Terry,” May 8 through June 19

Exhibit: Friday, May 8, through Friday, June 19

Gallery Opening: Friday, May 8, 6 – 8 p.m.

Quad City Arts Center, 1715 Second Avenue, Rock Island IL

A trio of gifted Midwest photographers, one of them based in the Quad Cities, will have their latest works featured at Rock Island's Quad City Arts Center from May 8 through June 19, with the Huang, Jackson, & Terry exhibition showcasing the talents of the Peoria-based Qingjun Huang and Natalie Jackson, as well as those of Davenport's Matthew Terry.

Qingjun Huang, as stated on PeoriaGov.org, “is a freelancer artist born and raised in China, and currently based in Peoria. His works have been exhibited worldwide, including at: Christie’s, London; International Museum of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, Switzerland; Chengdu Art Museum; Hunan Art Museum; Xi’an Art Museum Three Shadows Photography Art Center, China; HeadOn Photofestival, Australia; Photoquai Photography Biennial, France; Singapore International Photography Festival; Helsinki Photo Festival; and Benaki Museum, Athens, Greece. Qingjun's work was also included in the exhibition CIVILIZATION-The Way We Live Now at Kunsthalle München Germany in 2025. The BBC has featured him four times, while the New York Times, Bloomberg, Wired, Business Insider, The Guardian, and China Daily have also published his work. In addition, his photography has been featured in books and magazines, such as HUMAN.KIND, NatGeo, Harvard Business Review, My House My Room, Family Photography Now, Architecture Boston, Chinese Photography, and Grazia.”

As the artist states in her biography at NatalieJacksonPhotography.com: "I live in Peoria, Illinois and photograph throughout the Midwest. I'm a Portrait and Fine Arts Photographer. I sit on the Board of Directors at the Contemporary Art Center of Peoria, which is a frequently visited, highly active community arts center where my Nat Jack Studios resides. I'm also the photographer and on the Board of Directors for Central Illinois Jazz Society. I am a member of CIAO, Central Illinois Artist Organization (CIAO), and participate in First Fridays in the Side View Gallery on the second floor of the Contemporary Art Center. Have been on the jury for Sculpture Walk of Peoria in 2018 and 2019. Had a Crowns of Empowerment piece juried into a Carnegie Hall Exhibition in 2017. Won Best Photography Award in National 64 Arts Exhibit. Won Award of Excellence in the Art Guild Riverfront Fine Art Fair 2018. Won Best Photography Award in 2015 Art on Main Art Festival. Juried into several exhibits in Woman Made Gallery in Chicago, Illinois. I am a 2019 ArtPop Award Winner with a billboard of Black Magic Woman and 2021 Sky Art Winner with a billboard for S'Wonderful. Chopsticks was unveiled in the Washington Street Gallery in 2020. And I received the Purchase Award for my piece, Triptych Warrior, at Buchanan Center for the Arts in 2022. I was selected to exhibit my Portraits of Nature body of work on Chicago's Magnificent Mile in 2024."

As stated in his biography at MatthewTerryPhoto.com, the artist is "a contemporary photographer and graduate of the Academy of Art University, where he attained his BFA-Photography with a focus in Fine Art Photography in December of 2014. Currently located in Iowa/the Quad City area, Matthew picked up his first film camera in 2004 at age 16, and since has exhibited and sold work at galleries in Rome, San Francisco, Minneapolis, Colorado, Kansas City, Baltimore, and more. Additionally seeing work published both Nationally (Iowa, Vermont, New York, Atlanta) and Internationally (Italy, England). Growing up in the Midwest, he long felt alienated in both a physical and mental sense. Lost within his surroundings he found photography, and through this medium he found a way to connect with other individuals who also felt a similar level of detachment.

"Endlessly intrigued by the ability to capture and hold a distinct moment in time within a world constantly in motion, Matthew combines subjective perspective with universal appeal to create conceptual imagery that questions not only the identity of who we are, but also how we interact & relate to that which surrounds us.
Whether he’s capturing a landscape, architecture, or the human form, his work challenges the relation of inherent truths & fiction that occur in our existence. Utilizing contrasting tones, and a distinctly deliberate perspective influenced by combining the conscious and subconscious as a means to question reality, Matthew showcases work which evokes a level of detachment subtle enough for most people to connect with. It is through this connection that Matthew proves on a perceptual level just how related we actually are."

An opening reception for Huang, Jackson, & Terry will take place at Rock Island's Quad City Arts Center on May 8, with patrons invited, from 6 to 8 p.m., to enjoy refreshments and meet the artists while strolling the gallery. The exhibit itself will be on display through June 19, admission is free, and more information is available by calling (309)793-1213 and visiting QuadCityArts.com.