Join us in the Gallery for an opening reception displaying a freshly created by Mary Atwood.

Show: Jan 9 through Feb 17, 2012                      

Mary Atwood received an Art Ventures Grant from the Community Foundation in Jacksonville to produce a collection of large format black and white photographic prints of historic sites with a 150 mile radius of Jacksonville. This collection includes sites which range from the early home of the St. Augustine area to homesteads and farms of the rural areas of North Florida and Southeast Georgia to the Dungeness Ruins located on Cumberland Island. Her goal is to engage those who view the collection in a different and more personal thought process when considering the rich history of the area in which we live.

Mary Atwood
As the daughter of a World War II military photographer, I grew up with a camera in hand. My first memories of taking photographs are of using a Kodak Brownie during a family vacation on the “downeast coast” of Maine when I was only six years old. From there, my experiences involved learning to use a wide variety of camera equipment from Polaroids to Hasselblads and just about everything in between. I currently take all of my photographs with a Nikon D300.

My love of photography as a form of historical record and reflection is the direct result of having grown up in a home where both photographic journalism and fine art photography were valued.  Certain images (such as some of the Pulitzer Prize winners) had a distinct influence on how I came to view the world in my developing years.  Additionally, my love of nature was heightened because such diverse works as the scientific photographs produced by the Apollo astronauts’ and the artistic works of Ansel Adams. If I am someday able to have even one of my images affect someone in a similar way, then I will consider my pursuits as a photographic artist to have been successful.

For additional information and/or images, please contact Meredith Fordham Hughes by email or by phone at (904) 357-3052.

About JAXPORT Gallery

Located on the first floor of JAXPORT Headquarters, the Gallery features local artists rotating on a bi-monthly basis. JAXPORT Gallery is open during normal JAXPORT Headquarters hours and admission is free. Learn more about JAXPORT and the Arts.