My name is Cassandra Brown and over the next few weeks I will be posting samples of my photography from my recent senior art show thesis exhibit at Bridgewater College. The exhibit ran from April 30 to May 12, 2012. I was inspired to focus on the reflections of trees in rivers and creeks around the Harrisonburg and Piedmont area. The result was a surprising mixture of complex images that illustrate how important it is to notice the sometimes unseen beauty of nature and how important it is to conserve that beauty.

The following excerpt is my artist statement from my photography show.

 ”Lost and Grounded”

By Cassandra Brown

Edgar Degas once said, “Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.”

I have noticed many people constantly looking at their cell phones as they walk through nature. I wish I could shout out to them, to persuade them to stop and look around, notice their surroundings and contemplate the complexity of nature. Through my photography, I hope to challenge the viewer to stop, look twice and notice the mysteries of nature. I want to challenge the viewer to examine the way they “see” everyday.

Having grown up in the countryside and lived there all my life, spending time in nature was always a tradition for my family and me.

My photography is about noticing the clarity and obscurity of nature and how reality can be transformed within nature. By focusing on light, color and reflections, my photography demonstrates impressionistic work and even becomes non-representational. I wish to challenge the viewer to ask what is real and what is reflected.

The variation in colors of my photographs comes from photographing at different times of day and during different seasons. When taking the photographs, I framed the image to look complex, in an effort to encourage the viewer to become lost within the photograph. Limited post-capture processing is done to ensure the natural essence of each photo.

Look twice and you may just see it.
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h/t to V.E. Hicks Attorney at Law