A photo exhibit depicting black and white images of the Iowa State campus is on display at the Brunnier Art Museum. The exhibit will feature works from photographers George Christensen and Louise Haug.

The exhibit, “Campus Aesthetics in Black and White: George Christensen and Louise Haug,” opened March 21 and continues through August 5.

“The Christensen-Haug exhibit provides a unique prospective of campus life,” said Matt Lischer, work study student at the Brunnier Art Museum.

The exhibit focuses on the artistic beauty of the ISU campus through the eyes of these two photographers. It consists of 28 historical images by Haug, dating from 1948 to 1972, and 89 photos by Christensen taken over the last two years.

“The concept of displaying photos of ISU’s campus past and present has been in germination for about 20 years,” University Museums director Lynette Pohlman said.

Christensen was commissioned by Pohlman in 1998 to take contemporary photos of the campus. These photos were to be fit with Haug’s historical photos for display.

Christensen said that he did not see Haug’s photos before starting, they were fit together after they were taken.

Christensen said that besides this exhibit, he has had a number of exhibits for the Octagon Center For The Arts, other colleges in Iowa and colleges throughout the United States and Canada.

The process to select which pictures would be presented was a complicated one. Guest curators Mary Kitchell, Bob Campbell and Marilyn Annin chose the photos to be displayed.

“I think we tended to look for both artistic qualities and looked to select pictures pleasing to Iowa State,” Kitchell said.

To further illustrate the process of selecting the best photos to display, Kitchell and Campbell wrote an exhibit catalog essay.

“Despite their disparate paths, their visions converge at times and they both captured the aesthetic vision of Iowa State,” wrote Kitchell and Campbell.

The selected pictures were then matted and framed by a group of volunteers, led by Bud Ewing, retired professor of animal science.

A reception was held Sunday to kick off the exhibit.

“Both photographers were in attendance and George Christensen spoke. There were over 200 people there,” Kitchell said.

Christensen said that everything went beautifully on Sunday and it looks like the exhibit will be a big success.

The museum is open Tuesday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. No admission is charged.