Meet Your Peers: Adrienne Barnett

“My name is Adrienne Barnett and I was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. I started taking photographs my freshmen year of high school and have continued shooting until the present.

“While an undergrad at The University of Texas, my biggest fear was that I was going to wind up in a job where I sat in a cubicle. My other great fears were having cockroaches, eating mayonnaise and owning furniture. So, after I graduated, I began my quest to avoid all of those things.

“My adventure began when I moved to London, where I learned that cockroaches are nonexistent and mayonnaise is even more prevalent in Europe than it is in the United States. After living and traveling overseas, my visa ran out and I returned home.

“During the next few years I was working part time for wedding/event photographers, and working retail while living at home with my parents. After hours of surfing the Web, I finally landed a photo internship at Glimmerglass Opera in upstate New York. When the internship was over, I ended up right back home in San Antonio with my parents.

“Two months later, I decided I did not want to turn 25 while living with my folks. Moving to NYC and living on my friend’s sofa sounded like a much better idea. So I did.

“Shortly after my arrival in NYC, my luck changed. I found a roommate and she knew of a job as a photo assistant for two theater photographers. So, for the next two years I worked in NYC and life was good. Eventually, I started to conquer my fear of owning furniture. I think this was due to living in an 8 X 10 bedroom and essentially having no personal possessions.

“I ended up moving to Austin, Texas, and there I began to figure out my photography goals and I started my own business. The past few years have definitely been an adventure involving weddings and portraiture.

“However, I realized I wanted to get back to photojournalism. The University of Montana is giving me opportunity to follow this dream. On this adventure, I am bringing my own dishes and a bed. I hear there are no cockroaches.”