Guarnieri, Damien A.

Damien A. Guarnieri is an industrial photographer at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company in Marietta, Georgia. A native of Warren, Ohio, Guarnieri, 36, earned his bachelor’s degree in journalism at The Ohio State University in 1994. While attending OSU, he was bitten by the shutterbug when he worked on the university newspaper photography staff. After graduation, Guarnieri worked at the Columbus Dispatch as a photo stringer, covering high school football games in the central Ohio area.

In the autumn of 1995, Guarnieri moved to Georgia where he enrolled in the Savannah College of Art and Design to focus on his photography education. While attending SCAD, Guarnieri had two photographs included in the show, “A Tribute to Martin Luther King Jr.” This show documented the 1997 MLK parade in Savannah and was exhibited at galleries in various cities across the United States.

In 1997, Guarnieri moved to Marietta to work for the Marietta Daily Journal. He was employed at the newspaper for 10 years, his last seven as Chief Photographer, all the while covering news, arts and entertainment, and athletics in Cobb County and the metro Atlanta area. During Guarnieri’s time at the MDJ, he earned numerous awards for his photojournalism, including Photo-of-the-Year honors twice. His images have appeared in U.S. News and World Report, Dance Magazine, The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, as well as other publications in the United States and Europe. One of his photos is on display in the First Amendment Gallery at the Newseum in Washington, D.C.

In November 2007, Guarnieri and writer Joe Kirby collaborated on their first book entitled Marietta: Then and Now. Published by Arcadia Publishing, Guarnieri and Kirby’s book chronicles the growth and history of this prominent Atlanta suburb. In April 2008, Guarnieri had his first solo photography show at The Art Place Mountain View in east Cobb County, Georgia. His photographs were shown in the group show, “Photo/4” at Gallery 4463 in Acworth, Georgia in September 2008. His most recent show was at the Rome Area Council for the Arts gallery in Rome, Georgia this past June. Currently, Gallery 4463 is also representing him. Guarnieri and Kirby will have a second book, Marietta Revisited, published in November 2009.

A formally trained photojournalist, Guarnieri first tried his hand at nature photography in 2001 when he ventured to the Etowah River to capture the fall foliage around the Allatoona Dam. Guarnieri has photographed the Etowah River watershed since then, and has also traveled internationally photographing the landscapes and people from Mexico to Italy to Costa Rica.

Guarnieri lives in Kennesaw, Georgia with his wonderful wife Lisa and his little boy Luke.

Damien is a featured artist and member of Gallery 4463.