schiaparelli and chanel celebrated in bronze sculpture exhibition in london
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Why this underwater sculpture garden is a reason to visit Grenada
The Caribbean island of Grenada is called Spice Isle. With its lush and fertile greenery, there is ample opportunity for hikes and chocolate tours, but it’s…
Local photographer spotlights Assateague Island in new book
Assateague Island off the coast of Maryland draws visitors to its shores from both near and far. Whether it be to enjoy the soft sand beaches, or take in the sights with the famous wild ponies, guests enjoy the island’s magic for a myriad of reasons.
Local nature photographer Tyler Smiley is no different, and now he shares some of his experiences with the world in his first photo book, “Assateague Island’s Wild Horses.”
“I initially wasn’t planning on doing a photo book for Assateague as my first book,” Smiley said. “It sort of came up out of nowhere after a trip to the island in September when I realized how many photos of the horses I had taken over the last year.”
In one year, Smiley estimates he’s gone to Assateague more than 20 times, drawn by its stunning coastlines, wild marshes, and of course, the wild horses. His first visit as a photographer, spurred on by friend and fellow local photographer Kevin Lynam, came in November 2022. That visit inspired Smiley to work on capturing the beauty of the island every chance he could.
“Part of what makes Assateague Island so special is that you never know what you’re going to see or experience from one visit to the next. There have been some visits where I didn’t see anything – be it horses or other wildlife – and then others I’ve left with several hundred images to comb through,” Smiley said.
By his last count, Tyler said he has photographed approximately half of the current 80-plus-member herd of horses living on the Maryland side of the island. Though he hopes to in the future, he hasn’t yet gone to the Virginia side.
“I’ve already been asked if there will be a book like this one for the Virginia herd, but all I can say is time will tell,” he said.
“Assateague Island’s Wild Horses” is available through Smiley’s website as a limited-edition printing with only 24 copies available. Each copy is $45, and they are signed and numbered. For each copy sold, Smiley has committed to donate 15% of profits to the Assateague Island Alliance to assist its conservation and education programs. To purchase the book, go to tylersmileyphotography.com/shop.
For more information, contact Tyler Smiley at tyler@tylersmileyphotography.com, and go to the Assateague Island Alliance website at assateagueislandalliance.org.
This folk-art Marilyn Monroe beehive sculpture rules
This folk art Marilyn Monroe beehive sculpture by Birgit Maria Jönsson rules. The wooden sculpture of the cultural icon is great on its own, but as a bonus feature it has a beehive inside of it. Th…
Reader News: Ridgewater College photography program celebrates 50th anniversary
and
— In a remarkable milestone marking five decades of artistic excellence, the photography department at
celebrated its 50th anniversary on Saturday, Oct. 28, at its Willmar campus.
The anniversary festivities brought together alumni, current students, faculty, staff and the community for an afternoon of reminiscing, trivia, prizes. and more. Alumni — spanning from the class of 1975 to the most recent 2023 graduates — shared memories, insights and experiences, creating an atmosphere of nostalgia and camaraderie.
“It was fun to see so many alumni running for hugs, laughing, and having fun,” said Wade McDonald, one of Ridgewater’s photography instructors.
Over the course of 50 years, the department has undergone significant positive transformations. First, it adapted to student needs by removing most course prerequisites, allowing tailored course selection.
Contributed / Ridgewater College
“Then we shifted to an online format during the
and it ended up enhancing student satisfaction,” said instructor Amy Pawelk. “Students from near and far have appreciated increased availability of equipment through semester-long checkouts of state-of-the-art digital and mirrorless cameras and lenses as well as studio lighting.”
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Video lectures have offered course flexibility, attracting diverse student demographics, including more part-time and full-time nontraditional students by age and working professionals. This transition has expanded the program’s accessibility and nationwide reach.
Another significant improvement in the program has been educational collaborations with other programs to better prepare students for broader career opportunities. Students can now earn an online photography and design degree, as well as an agriculture marketing and communications certificate that includes digital photography and editing through Adobe Lightroom.
“One of the trends we’ve seen over the years is the expectation that more than just professional photographers can benefit from having photography skills,” McDonald explained. Many people working in industry will confirm that.
“We are so grateful to all anniversary attendees who made our celebration a success,” Pawelk said. “We look forward to shaping the next generation of visionary photographers and pushing the boundaries of creative expression.”
For more information on the Photography department, visit
www.ridgewater.edu/photography
.
Reader News submission guidelines:
Submissions for Reader News may be sent to: readers@wctrib.com. Each item should include the writer’s name, mailing address and contact phone number, in case of questions. Photos need to be high resolution, captioned and cannot come from Facebook. The full names of everyone in photos are required for publication.
In Heavy Impasto Paintings, José Lerma’s Introduces Background Figures to the Fore
“Leo” (2023), acrylic on burlap, 32 x 24 inches. Photos by Nicolas Brasseur. All images © José Lerma, courtesy of Almine Rech, shared with permission
In just a few deft swipes of thick acrylic paint, José Lerma creates richly contoured portraits that, like a silhouette, impart enigmatic impressions of figures whose full identities remain a mystery. In the artist’s third solo exhibition with Almine Rech, he continues to explore the material quality of acrylic paint (previously), which he applies in a fast and laborious process before it dries. Delicate, flat outlines portray noses, lips, and brows, which the artist augments with heavy impasto paint for hair and accessories. The medium often collides along central seams, separating light from shadow, and extends right up to the edge of the canvas.
The title of the exhibition, Fichureos, draws on a Puerto Rican colloquialism formed around a Spanish interpretation of the English word “feature,” used to reference ostentatious or pretentious displays. Lerma also looks to art history, fascinated by tertiary characters in the backgrounds of paintings that have been rendered in loose, minimal brushstrokes. Combined with the concept of facture, a term used to describe the handling of paint or quality of an artwork’s execution, Lerma embraces “fichureos” as both subject matter and philosophy.
If you’re in Paris, you can visit Almine Rech’s Turenne location to see Fichureos through December 22. Find more on the artist’s Instagram.
Detail of “Leo” (2023)
“Mina” (2023), acrylic on burlap, 96 x 72 inches
“Solandi” (2023), acrylic on burlap, 72 x 48 inches
Detail of “Solandi” (2023)
“Liana” (2023), acrylic on burlap, 48 x 32 inches
Installation view of ‘Fichureos’
Installation view of ‘Fichureos’
Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article In Heavy Impasto Paintings, José Lerma’s Introduces Background Figures to the Fore appeared first on Colossal.
100+ Photographers Help Raise Funds for 13 Orphaned Elephants
Photo: Ami Vitale/Courtesy of Vital Impacts
“Elephants play as they explore the wilderness at Reteti Elephant Sanctuary in northern Kenya. The orphans cared for by Reteti spend every day, all day exploring the wilderness of the 850,000 acre Namunyak Wildlife Conservancy where they are situated. Reteti is changing the lives of both elephants and people. Elephants are orphaned as a result of drought, human-wildlife conflict, natural mortality, and in rare cases, poaching. Reteti sanctuary is unique as the first community owned and run elephant sanctuary in Africa.”
Wildlife photographers capture poignant stories of survival and hope with their cameras. While their labor brings visibility to the issues animals face, over 100 photographers have taken their efforts to the next level. Vital Impacts, a non-profit dedicated to boosting environmental art and photography, is launching a fundraising fine art print sale in support of Reteti Elephant Sanctuary, Africa’s first indigenous-owned elephant sanctuary.
The efforts of the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary help in two ways. First, they raise orphaned elephants with the appropriate care so they can be safely released back into the wild once they come of age. Currently, the sanctuary is working with 13 elephant calves. “From being weaned from their bottles to extended explorations of the landscape on longer walks, they also increased their encounters with other wild animals and sourced more of their own food,” writes Vital Impacts.
At the same time, the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary also aspires to turn elephant conservation into an opportunity that will improve livelihoods in local communities, especially those of women. “All the keepers are from the local community and are formally trained in the care, rehabilitation and release of elephant calves. An elected board from within the community oversee all operational aspects of the Sanctuary,” states the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary on their website.
To support their efforts, renowned photographers such as Ami Vitale, Reuben Wu, Michael “Nick” Nichols, Jim Naughten, and Gunnar Gunnarson have donated their work to Vital Impacts’ annual print sale. From a tender encounter between Jane Goodall and a primate to a sci-fi-like desert landscape, the available images speak to a large number of sensibilities.
The photographs donated by photographer Ami Vitale were taken at the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary in Northern Kenya. For example, one of her image features two of the elephants that will be benefited from the print sale in an act of play as they explore the land that they call home. While another moving photograph showcases a baby elephant sweetly embracing one of its caretakers.
To browse all the images available as part of the print sale, visit Vital Impact’s website. You can also take a look at some of the photographs donated to this cause and learn their stories, below.
Vital Impacts, a non-profit dedicated to boosting environmental art and photography, is launching a fundraising fine art print sale.
Photo: Jim Naughten/Courtesy of Vital Impacts
“Our perception is that wildlife is something other, apart from humanity. It happens elsewhere, in far away lands, in nature documentaries, zoos or safari parks. This impression is fictional and bears little resemblance to reality, both because wildlife barely exists at all in this harmonious state, and also because despite our perceived separation, we are still very much bound to the laws of the natural world. The images in this series reflect this by using natural history specimens and dioramas, themselves a fictional human construct, and adding layers and altering and exaggerating colors to highlight the artificial and nature of what we are seeing.”
The funds will go towards Reteti Elephant Sanctuary, Africa’s first indigenous-owned elephant sanctuary.
Photo: Ami Vitale/Courtesy of Vital Impacts
“Mary Lengees comforts Lodokejek, an orphaned calf at Reteti Elephant Sanctuary in northern Kenya. The sanctuary is changing the lives of both elephants and people. Elephants are orphaned as a result of drought, human-wildlife conflict, natural mortality, and in rare cases, poaching. Reteti sanctuary is unique as the first community owned and run elephant sanctuary in Africa.”
Currently, the sanctuary is working with 13 elephant calves, which are getting the appropriate care so they can be safely released back into the wild once they come of age.
Photo: Reuben Wu/Courtesy of Vital Impacts
At the same time, the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary aspires to turn elephant conservation into an opportunity to improve livelihoods in local communities, especially those of women.
Photo: Michael “Nick” Nichols/Courtesy of Vital Impacts
“Late one afternoon as she was checking on the zoo chimps that her organization had been feeding, Jane Goodall approached the cage of a dangerous and aggressive male. Disarming him with a language learned from her years of research, she offered her golden hair for him to touch. It was a simple moment that came to represent so much.
Jane Goodall Institute does not endorse handling or close proximity to wildlife. This represents a historic context.”
To support their efforts, renowned photographers such as Ami Vitale, Reuben Wu, Michael “Nick” Nichols, Jim Naughten, and Gunnar Gunnarson have donated their work to Vital Impacts’ annual print sale.
Photo: Jim Richardson/Courtesy of Vital Impacts
“The sight was breathtaking. Tens of thousands of gannets flew out from cloud-wrapped Boreray to greet us as our boat pitched wildly on the Atlantic waves.
This uninhabited island is part of St. Kilda, forty miles out in the Atlantic beyond the Outer Hebrides.The last islanders abandoned St. Kilda in 1930, leaving it to the wild Atlantic storms and invoking melancholy memories of a lost world — and creating a haven for migrating and nesting seabirds like Gannets and Puffins. Together these stories of human abandonment and wildlife sanctuary have garnered St. Kilda dual UNESCO World Heritage Site awards.
When I came that evening I was simply seeking scenes of a remote island at sunset. I was disappointed to find Boreray shrouded in clouds. But as we came around the sun broke through and the birds swept down upon us in multitudes. The spectacle totally eclipsed my expectations, and here was the gift of wild splendor and transforming wonder. I remember whooping and hollering while the crew member held on to my belt so I wouldn’t plunge over the side and into the sea.”
To browse all the images available as part of the print sale, visit Vital Impact’s website.
Photo: Nick Brandt/Courtesy of Vital Impacts
“The elephant was killed by poachers in Tsavo in southern Kenya in 2004. His tusks were stored in Kenya Wildlife Service’s ivory strongroom. It is doubtful that there is an elephant left alive today on the African continent with tusks this size.
The rangers in this photo work for Big Life Foundation. Big Life protects over 1.6 million acres with more than 350 rangers in 36 permanent and mobile outposts. With the aid of multiple patrol vehicles, tracker dogs, night vision equipment and aerial monitoring, this co-ordinated protection for the ecosystem has brought about a dramatic reduction in poaching of all animals in the region, and an attendant increase in key populations.”
Vital Impacts: Website
My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Vital Impacts.
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Photographer Wins Prize for Heartbreaking Story About the Plight of Endangered Forest Elephants
Photographer Showcases the Majestic Beauty of Elephants To Help in Their Conservation [Interview]
Herd of Wild Elephants Take an Adorable Nap Together After 300-Mile Journey
Rice Lake veterans statue nearly ready, more funds needed for installation
The approximately 1,000-pound Rice Lake-bound statue is waiting in the University of Wisconsin-Superior’s sculpture workshop for installation.
Friends, artists remember renowned Navajo artist Baje Whitethorne Sr.
Flagstaff artist Shonto Begay was in high school, and running with friends through the Navajo Tribal Fair in Tuba City, when something stopped him in his tracks.
“It was a windy night, it was kind of dusty and it was nighttime at the Navajo Tribal Fair in Tuba City. The great Western Navajo Fair. I was running with my buddies, and I passed one of the booths,” Begay said. “And then there was Baje behind a little table, small watercolors all over. It stopped me.”
This watercolor painting by Navajo artist Baje Whitethorne Sr. was one of many featured in his retrospective exhibit at the Museum of Northern Arizona in 2022.
Baje Whitethorne Sr. instructs Khalid Honie during a workshop in this 2019 file photo.
Students Khalid Honie and Orinda Goddard watch as Baje Whitethorne Sr. paints on a canvas as part of MNA’s new Namingha Institute artist residency in this 2019 file photo.
Navajo artist Baje Whitethorne Sr. works on one of his paintings.
Photographers Made a Splash (With No Flash) at the Aquarium of the Pacific’s Photo Night
Photographers trawled the Aquarium of the Pacific looking for perfect shots at the Aquarium of the Pacific’s annual photographers’ night this October, and the prize-winning catches have now been announced.
Crystal Stromer’s photo of a giant sea bass appearing to gaze pensively at a school of fish took home the top prize. The aquarium’s Andrew Reitsma, who helped to judge the entries, said that the winning shot caught the judges’ attention for its moodiness that embodied the times we live in.
This shot of an octopus in a contorted position won second place in the contest.
(Eric Horvat/Aquarium of the Pacific)
Reitsma said that the judges look for technicality, composition, and emotion in the photos of the aquarium’s animals, but they’re also looking for an unquantifiable “wow” factor.
“Having done this for 10 years, you see a lot of similar images and you kind of look for things that you haven’t seen before, things that kind of strike out as, ‘wow, this is an amazing image,'” Reitsma said.
This photo wowed the judges enough to win third place at the Long Beach aquarium’s photo contest.
(Forrest Blanton/Aquarium of the Pacific)
The photo contest’s past winners have captured a variety of animals at the Aquarium, from frogs to tropical fish to the Pacific spiny lumpsucker.
During this year’s photo night, photographers had free rein over the museum’s exhibits, and they could also borrow equipment from vendors to help them take their shots. The aquarium was closed to the public for the event, allowing nature photographers to get wildlife photos without having to brave the waters of the Pacific.
This photo won honorable mention at the photographers’ night.
(Brent Lew/Aquarium of the Pacific)
Reitsma also said the Blue Lagoon, where the first-place picture was taken, is a great place for visitors to camp out looking for a shot.
“It has a lot of opportunities for taking pictures of the sardines and the schools of fish to the slow moving giant sea bass,” Reitsma said. “It becomes challenging, but you can also step back and get these beautiful shots of glowing light coming down from the upper parts of the exhibit downlighting the darker areas at the bottom.”
Reitsma, who has a photography degree from Cal State Long Beach, said his favorite animal to take photos of is the octopus. While they can be hard to track down at the aquarium since they spend much of their time out of sight, octopuses featured in two of the top ten photographs this year.
He offered some tips for anyone taking photos at the aquarium.
“Try to be as head on with your subject matter as possible,” Reitsma said. “When you start shooting at an angle, you get aberration in the glass and it makes it difficult to get sharp shots, but if you try to get forward facing, perpendicular to your subject, it really helps to get everything really sharp.”
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