“Red Hatters” project a different picture of aging than many have predicted aging baby boomers would project. And that picture, literally, is what William Gentry has tried to capture with his camera. His portraits show that to the members of the local groups (as an example), aging is not the downer of all time. Red Hatters see the later years of life as a time to have a ball. Gentry says of his latest portrait exhibition still in the working stage, “It just seemed natural to build an exhibit around them as they are an interesting development of our time.”

The Lansing Gladhatters were the first group to step forward to participate in Gentry’s newest portrait exhibition. When the project is complete, he hopes to have 100 photos of 100 different, fun-loving ladies. Initially the portraits will be found on Gentry’s website, “thegentryjoint.com”. Physical exhibits will likely follow that and, very possibly, into the Art-o-matic machines found in art galleries and museums across the United States. If the Gentrys have similar luck with this exhibit as they had in the “Living Word” project, the photos could even make their way onto the book shelves that are already growing with volumes exploiting the Red Hat explosion. And it all would have begun in Lansing, Iowa, with the Gladhatters.

William and Laura Gentry have about a dozen artistic projects that have become very successful exhibits. The Red Hat portraits differ in the chief respect that the emphasis is placed on the use of color. Traditionally, William prefers monochromatic images which emphasize contrast. “It would have been pointless for me to construct a series of portraits of Red Hatters,” he said, “without finding some way to emphasize their terrific fashion statements. To heighten the awareness of the fashions, I dropped all color save red and purple so the photos would take on a painted look, characteristic of hand tinted photographs of yesteryear.”

The idea for the Red Hat Portrait project came to fruition for Gentry this last summer while vacationing in New England. Strolling through the Museum of Modern Art in Boston, he says he and his wife, Laura, were overwhelmed by a very large Red Hat Chapter. “Their showy outfits and gala manners captured our attention,” he said, “especially against the austere pieces in the 20^th century gallery. I began thinking right away of how best to capture and display a series of portraits involving Red Hat members.”

Gentry says he wants the portraits to build upon the statement of Red Hat founder Sue Ellen Cooper who said, in part, “We believe silliness is the comedy relief of life and, since we are all in it together, we might as well join red-gloved hands and go for the gusto together. Underneath the frivolity, we share a bond of affection, forged by common life experiences and a genuine enthusiasm for wherever life takes us next.” Gentry’s aim, therefore, is that this same sense of fun-filled camaraderie, strong sense of self and hunger for life, will be evident in his portraits. His says his mother, a member of two red hat groups, personifies his concept of the red hat philosophy - regardless of her ups and downs, “she is a never-ending source of wonder, amazement, and courage to me.”

A visit to “thegentryjoint.com” - which now includes the first segment of the Lansing Gladhatter portraits, is a visual example of how Gentry uses the medium of photography to expand his and our vision of the world. “My approach to art is conceptual narrative-pulling or making a story out of the everyday,” he explains. “My art is designed to edify by enticing the viewer to consider an alternative take on the familiar. The old finds a new audience. Old forms combined with new technology keeps the peculiar practice of artistic creation running at its peak. I have finally accepted that art is where the artist finds it and the more I look, the more I am overwhelmed by the images that are so quickly discarded each moment of my life.”

Growing up, Gentry was surrounded with an assortment of cameras. He played around with instamatics and Polaroid cameras - documenting his world and family vacations. His interest solidified as his father increased his interest in photography. As his father acquired new equipment, he passed his Argus rangefinder 35mm down to his son. That was all it took. Still today, photography is a connection to his father who passed away twenty years ago when William was still a boy.

William became deeply fascinated with optics. As he remembers it, “The camera had the ability to slow down my observations for as long as I could. It is the nature of the camera to record slices of time with extreme accuracy. I enjoy building gadgets and building a camera system is a never-ending source of wonder - bringing pieces of a puzzle together for a purpose.”

In addition to photography, William composes music and has written several short stories. Writing was the first art form that he took public when he published a small literary periodical in college called “Soapbox.” “All the while I was publishing the magazine,” he said, “I wished I had more access to images. I find that rather ironical now since I am overwhelmed with images. At present, photography has taken me to heights that no previous art form has, so it’s now my priority. As a form of expression, it has been good to me.”

Gentry is entirely self-taught. Everyday he spends several hours reading articles from the top photography journals. He follows the trends of accomplished professionals as well as the latest equipment. All this combined with the age old proverb “Practice Makes Perfect” has yielded some very pleasing results.

“I think of myself as a vision collector,” says Gentry. “I am never without a camera, because subject matter abounds.”