ON THE HILL
SHINE: LUKE YANG ’22 To be in the moment. To remember the moment. CAMERA IN HAND, HE DOCUMENTS TODAY’S CAMPUS AND PEOPLE.
He was inspired by his dad in the early 2000s, “with that big camcorder over his shoulder,” Yang says. “It made me want to use a camera.” His own cameras followed, then smartphones, then his iPhone. He learned to make the shot count with as little editing as possible. At Gustavus, he started photographing student events. “I joined Hmong American Cultural Outreach on campus and became PR chair and historian,” he says. That led to gigs with other student organizations—photos for the International Culture Club Festival, Lunar New Year, Hmong New Year. He became a go-to photographer for student orgs focused on culture. “I’m accessible, especially to students of color. When you have photos of you being happy and candid with a sense of ease in your own cultural expression, it’s important.” This academic year, he joined The Gustavian Weekly as a photographer. It’s great, he says, but because of COVID, “All of the photographers have never been in one place at the same time. I finally met one of the other photographers [in March] at Drag Queen bingo.” A communication studies major and English minor who also loves dance, “the through-thread for me is communication. Photography, writing, dancing—they all have a heart in communication,” he says. Photography in particular, he has learned, “comes down to having an eye. I learn to walk around campus and literally stop and think, ‘that’s a great shot of the Chapel.’ It comes down to what you can do in the moment, what you can frame up. It doesn’t even feel like working. It’s just me practicing my skills and looking at campus in a new way.” He comes from a long line of Gusties: his older brother, Nick Yang ’12, his uncles John Lee ’08 and Jerry Vang ’04, his auntie Maisee Ly ’03, two sisters-in-law, and a cousin, Justin Ly, a fellow Class of 2022 member. So far, Yang’s the only photographer. “I’m walking a path and pushing a boundary. It’s really poetic. And what’s been amazing is that I take photos of this place that a lot
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of us call home.”
Despite the pandemic, Yang photographed some significant historic events: the Pride Parade on campus this fall, the Ruth Bader Ginsburg candlelight vigil in Saint Peter, and the first-ever Lyrical Cafe in the new Center for Inclusive Excellence. Plus, that “Dating During COVID” assignment. (Hopefully that will soon be history, too.)
COMMUNITY
GUSTAVUS QUARTERLY | SUMMER 2021
