International students reframe Grand Forks in photos
In ‘Grand Forks Through My Lens’ photo exhibit, UND international students share fresh views of new hometown
At first glance, many of the images displayed in the Empire Arts Gallery for the “Grand Forks Through My Lens” exhibit may feel familiar — tree-lined paths, quiet corners of campus, a rainy view of University Park.
But at second glance, one might notice something more.
A puddle of rain becomes a mirror for trees lining the Red River. A sunrise on the way to class is now dreamy and cinematic. Places that students, staff and faculty pass by every day take on a new life through the eyes of those seeing them — in this case, international students at UND.
Now on display at the Empire Arts Center through August, the annual exhibition brings together photographs taken by UND international students, offering new perspectives on campus and the city.
Seeing with fresh eyes
That sense of rediscovery is exactly what organizers hoped to create.
The UND International Center, in collaboration with the Division of Student Affairs, UND Art Collections and the City of Grand Forks, holds this exhibit each year to welcome international students to campus and invite them to share their unique perspectives.
“That’s why we decided on the name ‘Grand Forks Through My Lens,’” said Manuela Gabriel, director of UND’s International Center and organizer of the exhibition. “It’s through the lens of the photographer — how they see the city through their eyes.”
The photographers submitting work for the exhibit are not professionals, Gabriel said. Instead, the competition invites international students to capture moments using their smartphones, with minimal editing.
“They’re just taking pictures with their smartphones,” she added. “We don’t want too much editing. This exhibition is about how these students really see the city.”
The result is a gallery that feels both familiar and surprising.
Ashran Fernando’s photograph of University Park, for example, captures the striking beauty of seasonal change.
A fifth-year Ph.D. candidate in physics, Fernando — who earned second place for his image, “University Park: Where Golden Leaves Whisper Welcome” — said the changing seasons are one of his favorite aspects of living in North Dakota, a contrast to his native Sri Lanka.
“The environment was very beautiful,” he said. “Everything was covered with yellow leaves. I thought it would be really nice to capture this moment.”
Fernando appreciated looking at other pictures in the exhibit. Spaces he passes through every day are made new through others’ perspectives.
“Sometimes there are places that I see in my day-to-day life,” he said. “But the way someone else captures it — it’s new. Same place, but it’s a new angle.”
Familiar places in new light
What makes the exhibition special is that — for many of the students — the competition was an afterthought.
Yeshani Withana Pathirannehelage, the first-place winner and an English student from Sri Lanka, recalled taking her picture at a secluded spot after her first major academic conference.
“Right after my first conference, I was so stressed and I asked my husband to go on a walk. We just found this hidden place,” she recalled. “I love nature — I call it my piece of peace. Now, my piece of peace brought me a reward.”
She captured the Red River just before sunset, with moody lighting and a perfect reflection of the trees lining the river in the water.
“I thought it was so unique,” she said. “I just wanted to save the moment.”
Victor Chukwu, a cellist and music performance major from Nigeria, described a similar impulse.
“I used to go to my classes very early in the morning, and I kept seeing this beautiful sky,” he said. “This one was breathtaking for me. I wanted to capture that moment so I could remember it.”
For Chukwu, a student immersed in the arts, photography and music are closely connected.
“I’m a visual person,” he said. “Whenever I play something, it brings pictures to my mind. For me, picture and music are intertwined.”
Only later did both students decide to submit their images after learning about the competition.
“That spontaneity is part of what makes the exhibition so compelling,” Gabriel said. “It’s something everyone likes to do — take photos, capture a moment — and then it becomes something special that can be celebrated.”
Building belonging for UND international students
Beyond the images themselves, the exhibition carries a specific purpose: helping international students feel connected — not just to UND, but to the broader Grand Forks community.
“The intention is for students to build that sense of belonging,” Gabriel said. “Some of them are here for five or six years. I want them to feel they’re part of UND, but also part of the city of Grand Forks.”
Displayed alongside the images are the photographers’ home countries — a reminder of the global community behind each perspective. While the exhibition represents 16 countries, UND’s International Center serves students from more than 100.
“It’s amazing,” she said. “Some people don’t even realize how many countries are represented here.”
This year, the first-, second- and third-place winners — Yeshani Withana Pathirannehelage, Ashran Fernando and Novodi Rodrigo — are all from the same country. This is a first for the competition.
Top entries are recognized with cash prizes of $500, $250 and $100 for first, second and third, respectively.
Judging is conducted blindly by external reviewers, with no identifying information attached to the photos.
A gallery of diverse perspectives
Perhaps the most powerful moment comes not from any single photograph, but from seeing them all together.
Standing in the gallery, surrounded by forty photographs of the city, students from around the world share the experience of appreciating their art and their new home together.
“It’s a wonderful time to get together and celebrate our diversity,” Gabriel said. “But also to look at the city in a different perspective.”
For the students, that experience can be deeply personal.
“They’re super proud of seeing their photos in the gallery, and seeing their country represented,” she said. “Many students love taking pictures and sending them back home. Now it’s something they can be proud of.”
For viewers who think they know Grand Forks like the back of their hand but want to see it in a new light, the exhibition is open in the gallery of the Empire Arts Center in downtown Grand Forks through August.
