'Tom the Swap Meet Photographer,' Shows Off 'This is San Bernardino' Exhibit

Earning his nickname as “Tom the Swap Meet Photographer,” Thomas McGovern, professor of art and photography at Cal State San Bernardino, loves to shoot photographs of his city, especially offbeat scenery, to make his point. This month, his photography exhibit, “Swap Meet: This is San Bernardino,” has been on display at the National Orange Show Art Gallery, 689 S. E Street. The exhibit is free and is scheduled to show through Sunday, Sept. 27, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. McGovern decided to provide a different perspective of the city of San Bernardino through the prism of the swap meet in response to the recent negative publicity about the city in a Los Angeles news story. “My photographs celebrate the intensity of the light and heat, and marvel at the assortment of items bought and sold at the swap meet,” said McGovern. “I am fascinated by the design and arrangement of the vendors’ tents and booths, and how the goods are arranged. These arrangements reveal the character and tastes of the vendors, and those who are enticed to stop and shop at their booths.” McGovern, who lives in San Bernardino, wanted to challenge the negative stereotypes about the city and its residents by photographing some of the beauty that surrounds San Bernardino. “I don’t have to travel very far to find amazing things to photograph,” he said. “I can step right outside my front door and find beauty immediately, in nature, in architecture, and wherever people gather.” McGovern said he earned the nickname “Tom the Swap Meet Photographer” because he would hang out each Sunday taking photographs of the vendors and shoppers at the swap meet, and would later present them to the subjects. They were impressed by the beauty of the photographs and would ask “How much?” McGovern would quickly say they were a gift to them. “I started hanging around the swap meet more than two years ago because I was impressed by the groups of people, both the vendors who were there to sell their wares, as well as shoppers who are looking for just the right treasure,” he said. “I’m inspired to see the grandma making ‘pupusas’ (a savory Salvadoran thick, hand-made corn tortilla stuffed with seasoned pork, cheese and refried beans), for her family as they prepare for a day of selling at their booth.” McGovern said that on Sundays in San Bernardino, most of the streets are quiet “… until you arrive at the National Orange Show grounds of the swap meet. Suddenly, the area comes alive bustling with vendors and shoppers, food booths and music. It’s a real family-friendly, communal place to gather with your families, as well as a great place to meet your neighbors.” In addition to photography, McGovern is also the author of four books of his photography, “Bearing Witness (to AIDS),” 1999 Visual AIDS/A.R.T. Press; “Amazing Grace,” 2010 Parker Publishing; “Hard Boys + Bad Girls,” 2010 Schiffer Books; and most recently, “Vital Signs,” which he co-authored with poet and fellow CSUSB professor Juan Delgado, 2013 Heyday Books. “Vital Signs” received an American Book Award from the Before Columbus Foundation in 2014. His photographs have been on exhibit (30 solo and 50+ group exhibition) and are in the permanent collections of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; The Brooklyn Museum of Art; The Baltimore Museum of Art; The Museum fur Photographie (Germany), and the Riverside Art Museum, among many others. The artist can be reached at thomasmcgovern06@gmail.com.