An Outdoor Exhibition on the San Gabriel River Trail
As a photographer I have become interested in insects. Using a form of photography called macro photography, I have become aware of a different world that co-exists right along side our own. It is a fantastic world to say the least it has been coined a “Micro Cosmos”. I want to use macro photography to reveal, the culture of this world that operates alongside and within our human world.
Insects are among the longest survivors on the planet but most of us only actually pay attention to their presence when they sting us, eat our food, scare us or we see them on TV. As an artist, macro photography allows me to share my perspective and my growing knowledge by giving insects the same respect as one would give to photographing a human being.
Macro photography brings a high level of detail that allows for a human scale perspective. It has also been an inspiration for me to read and research about creatures that I would otherwise never notice. I want to show the Georgetown community the unseen world of spiders and insects with an artistic perspective. Since most insects are small and move fast we don't have enough time to see their colors, proportions, and most importantly a lot of their unique behaviors. The advantage of a photograph is that it can capture a lot of detail within one frame, to allow us to analyze and see unexpected bodies.
I felt that it was appropriate to display an outdoor exhibition of these macro portraits along our San Gabriel River Trail. My photographs reveal bugs common to the central Texas area. In the fall of 2009, one of my macro photographs, a damselfly portrait, was displayed near 7th and Main street as part of the Happy Trails Project. This opportunity encouraged me to think about this project. Currently I have 20 banners on display at the San Gabriel River Trail near Rivery Park in Georgetown, Texas.
For more information on this project please visit the article on Southwestern University's Newsroom