The Svalbard Archipelago: Photography by Rhea Banker
Nature’s Palette: photography by Paul Hetzel
Rhea Banker is a photographer and award-winning book designer. Much of her work is based on ancient movements recorded within the Earth’s crust. During this time of climate upheaval, she has focused her work particularly on the changing far edges of the Arctic landscape. Her textural images reflect the stories of creation and evolution held within the rocky surfaces and changing coastlines of the North.
Most recently, she participated in an art residency in the Svalbard Archipelago, 10 degrees below the North Pole. Before that, she spent 5 years exploring, working, and exhibiting up and down Greenland’s West Coast. Her images form part of her response to the deep connections she experiences between stone, sea, and ice as giving witness to the changing life of our fragile planet.
Dedicated to exploring stories of change within ancient rocky landscapes, I became fascinated by the textures, colors, and forms now becoming visible beneath the melting ice and snow. As glaciers recede, the Earth reveals formations of the land’s past and hints at its unknown future.
Paul Hetzel seriously took up photography in 1994 while on a trek to Mount Everest. The landscapes were inspiring and worthy of preserving. Upon return to Springfield, he constructed a darkroom in the basement and watched as the magic unfolded before his eyes. His early mentors, Jack Holowitz, Steve Sherman and Stan Sherer taught him the basics of light, composition and form.
In 1995 he switched to the digital medium which gave him finer control of the final image. He subsequently participated in workshops given by John Sexton, Charles Cramer, Jack Dykinga and Justin Black.
The grand masters created magnificent works of art utilizing their brush strokes and color palette. My intention with this exhibit is to display a collection of magnificent colorful creations fashioned by Nature’s Palette.
