The Third Floor Gallery in the Bell Memorial Union is currently hosting a photography exhibit titled “What if?” by Chico State senior, Bailey James.

The exhibit consists of photographs taken by James at different sites in California, as well as one from a trip to Chicago. Accompanying each photograph is a question that she would like the viewer to reflect upon.

James noted that we all deal with so much uncertainty in our lives, and she wanted to provide a place for people to challenge the negative connotations that are often associated with that uncertainty.

“The future is scary, but it is also exciting, and so I really hope this gallery invites people to ask themselves those questions, and hopefully find some peace in knowing that it isn’t all bad,” James said.

It is the first time James has had her work displayed in an art show. She is an organizational communication studies major with minors in business administration and marketing.

She is not new to photography, however.

“I’ve been doing photography ever since I had the little plastic camera as a kid,” James said. “It was pretty cool to get to do this, especially since my career and my focus in school is unrelated.”

She has frequented the gallery in BMU many times since she came to Chico State as a freshman in 2021. At first, she was somewhat reluctant to apply for her own show, but a little encouragement from her family was enough to convince her to give it a shot.

She still was not entirely confident that she would be chosen.

“I’ve been up here, so I know the kind of art that goes up here,” she said.

The process was a little intimidating at first, and she admitted to being far outside of her comfort zone. James praised the Associated Students for all their assistance with putting the exhibit together.

“The AS has been so amazing. They’ve helped with marketing, the food, the design, the organization. Everything,” James said.

The gallery below contains a selection of photographs from the exhibit, which will run until Sept. 20.

Sean Shanks can be reached at [email protected].

To read the article in Spanish, go here.