Imagine a place where all at once someone can see mannequins standing in Reelfoot Lake or a Venice Sunset. Or a place where someone can see a quarry in Colorado and a snake and a turtle cuddling up together. This place is Creative Chemistry and is now on display in the Fine Arts lobby.

Creative Chemistry is the title that Stephanie Bauer and Stephanie Raines chose for their senior art exhibit.

“We've had almost all of our classes together and on top of that we are really good friends,” said Raines.

The two chose a chemistry and periodic table theme for their presentation to show the chemistry that their work has.

The show opened Wednesday with the reception scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday night in the Fine Arts lobby.

Bauer is a graphic design major from St. Louis, Mo. who would like to someday work in an advertising agency or teach art. She will be staying at UTM after graduation to pursue a master's degree in Education.

One of her favorite pieces in the show is her butterfly mix and match children's book.

“I wanted to find something that kids would like to play with, something interactive,” said Bauer.

Most of her works are advertisements and posters made using Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. One of her favorite commercial works is a box for hypothetical Dunagan Farms Cow Pies. Bauer credits the Oreo Cows from across University Street as her inspiration on that creation.

Bauer says that her designs are structured around bright, intense and contrasting colors.

“I like bright, full colors that attracts someone's eye to your work,” said Bauer.

Bauer did her internship with Graphic Links in St. Louis, Mo. Raines is a graphic design major from Union City. She will also be staying at UTM for a little longer as she will pursue an MBA degree.

Raines has done a lot of work on the commercial side of the industry. She has worked internships with the UTM Office of Student Life and the Research Grants and Contracts Office.

She has made posters for such events as Quadstock and Southern Cultures week. She also worked with Bauer to make the poster for the Vanguard Theatre production, The Good Doctor.

Raines believes in her work that “less is more” and is very happy with how clean and sharp her work turns out.

One of her favorite pieces is a timeline fold-out book that she made that chronicles the first 20 years of her life. She made it in book making class and gave it to her parents as a gift.

She also has an assortment of black and white photography that feature scenes from a recent trip to Italy and personal favorites from around west Tennessee.