The first exhibit of the spring semester in the Roberta A. Fiskum Art Gallery will take viewers on a trip around the globe.

“Through the Lens of a Traveler” features photos from Ghana, Ireland, Mexico and Ecuador.

All the photos from Ghana, Ireland and Mexico were taken by the Travel Study Coordinator at the Center for Global Education, Dan Colleran.

Colleran has worked at UW-Whitewater for the past two-and-a-half years. He has participated in three travel studies. He said he has always been interested in art and comes from a painting background, but then became interested in photography.

Colleran said his main focus is what he calls “grassroots public art,” or graffiti.

Colleran said he was surprised by the large amount of public art in Oaxaca, Mexico and Galway, Ireland. When Colleran takes a photo of the art, he said he doesn’t just want to capture the art.

“I want to capture everything, not just the art itself, but the environment,” Colleran said.

Ghana posed some challenges for Colleran because the sand from the Sahara Desert was in the air, making the photos look hazy.

One thing that particularly interested Colleran was that all the signs in Ghana are hand-painted. He said he remembers a sign that said, “Instant Photograph Here” Even that sign, which he expected to have a photo, was hand-painted.

This gallery will be Colleran’s first exhibition. He said he wanted to share his photographs because he wants to show people a different way to view art.

All of the photos will be mixed together and Colleran said viewers won’t be able to tell where some of the photos were taken unless they look at the title.

The “Through the Lens of a Traveler” will also feature photos, artwork and journals from the Optimist Club’s recent trip to Ecuador.

Roberta A. Fiskum Art Gallery Sophomore Student Manager Ella Hopkins said the majority of the photos featured in the exhibit will be from Colleran’s travels.

There will be a reception at 3 p.m. on Jan. 24, at Roberta A. Fiskum Art Gallery in the University Center, where Colleran and members of the Optimist Club will speak about their experiences.

The exhibit will be on display from Jan. 20 to Feb. 10. The gallery is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Fridays and is closed during the weekend. Admission to the gallery is free.

Colleran and Hopkins said they hope students and community members will view the photos because it shows a unique view of these countries, and it shows other parts of the world they might not ever see.

“It’s good for people to realize what else is out there,” Hopkins said. “Dan’s photos and even the Ecuadorian side of it shows students a different side of what the traveler sees and hopefully that will inspire people to start seeing the world.”