2008 Woodie Awards
Art show highlights nature
Dominic Forth
Issue date: 11/17/05 Section: Features
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The Gallery is offering the opportunity for members of the University and the Warrensburg community to meet the man behind the exhibition. Hess will discuss his work in an open-invitation informal talk at 1 p.m. Tuesday in the Art Center Gallery.
"John's perspective is both analytical and aesthetic, coolie objective as well as personal," said director of the Art Gallery, Michael Crane. "He treads a path that is part art, part science. His show features 70 images of flora and fauna spanning the years [from] 1964 to the present."
Since becoming active in large format photography, Hess has placed three times in the "Missouri 50," the top 50 places in the Missouri professional division.
Hess had previous exhibitions in Lawrence, Kan., and the Erdman Gallery of Princeton Theological Seminary. Hess also served as president of the Prairie Chapter of the Biological Photographic Association, holds a Ph.D in zoology and is emeritus professor of biology at Central.
"I've assembled a world view that I think is ethical and affirms the value of life," Hess stated. "Because my natural inclination is toward visual media, photography is perhaps my best vehicle of expression.
"This exhibition is about sharing that very personal view and celebrating the treasures that surround us; always mindful that we are destroying much that we value as the logical end point of attitudes that permeate our culture. Viewers of these photographs will develop their own opinion about this world view."
"Pictures that straddle the worlds of art and science. As a biologist, his subjects are the fauna and flora of the world, but his images also are compelling as fine art, adding intimate and unusual perspectives on how to look at the world," is how Andrew Conrad described Hess's exhibition.
With the exhibition running until Dec. 15, Hess stated it is what viewers take away from the exhibit personally that measures success.
"For me, the most important achievement will take place if the experience of interacting with these images, and the text accompanying them, reaches some important part of you," he said.
"If you look into the eyes of these animals and feel kinship and respect; if you revel in the complexity and beauty of these subjects and recognize their inner value; if you feel the rhythms of life that permeate these images as well as our own lives, then this exhibit is a success."
The Art Center Gallery is located at 217 Clark St. Hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays. The gallery also recently began offering Tuesday viewing until 8 p.m.