Artist's Statement
NRich your perspective through a different lens...
From as early as I can remember, my father had a camera in hand. My mother was his favorite subject followed by me and my three younger siblings. At age 8, my birthday present was a Brownie camera. That magical square box propelled my fledgling interest and skills as a photographer.
From late-elementary school through high school, I worked weekends at my father’s pharmacy. I was extremely fortunate to benefit from the photo-processing services offered at the store. On a regular schedule, a Kodak representative would come to the store to pick up a sack containing the exposed rolls of film for processing. Two weeks later those envelopes would return to the store with their eagerly awaited contents of square, white-trimmed, black and white “pictures.”
Since retiring as a school administrator in 2016, time and my camera offer me infinite opportunities to channel my creativity and passion to make images that bring me joy, beauty, and a sense of wonder. I have always had a voracious appetite to figuratively wrap my arms around most anything I see. The camera helps me do this. I want to understand what makes things tick and the science behind their being.
A particular draw for me has been the captivating and unpredictable movement of water. It inspired three of my major collections: Nor’eastern Dinghies, Sea Sculptures, and Glass, Liquid, and Ice Capades. Portraiture, travel, and macro photography inspire much of my other work. Each type of photography feeds my need to explore, experiment, and learn.
I am a member of the artists’ cooperative, The Clever Hand Gallery, located in Wellesley, MA. I can be reached at nancyrichphotography@gmail.com. My website is www.nancyrichphotography.com, and my Instagram account is #nancyrichphotography.
Introduction to the First Three Collections
Nor'eastern Dinghies - All along the northeast coast, from Newport to Nova Scotia, there are charming harbors that beckon with names such as Sorrento, Friendship, and Roque Bluffs. Dinghies are the mainstay of these harbors. These small rowboats can be very rudimentary in design or works of exceptional craftsmanship. Over a ten-year period, I sought to capture images that preserve the beauty of these now elusive wooden rowboats. They are symbolic of the people and landscape of the coastal regions: hard-working, pragmatic, picturesque, and rugged. - My book, Afloat on the Tide, was published by Sheridan House in 2009 (ISBN: 978-1-57409-285-1). It highlights over 230 photographs of the wooden rowboats that grace our north Atlantic coastline.
Sea Sculptures - As if presenting a gift to the beachcomber, sea sculptures are ceremoniously delivered onshore at the whim of the wind and waves. Waiting to be discovered, they nestle in the sand during low tide, only to be uprooted and succumb once again to the rising, churning tides. The power of the ocean's movements carves, trims, polishes, and otherwise transforms each piece. With the right lighting and composition, shells and seaweeds present as stunning works of art.
Glass, Liquid, and Ice Capades - The three elements of glass, liquid, and ice are all subject to an infinite number of shapes and colors. This variability offers me great latitude to express creativity and develop unique images. The bubbles and swirls inherent in liquids add dimension and motion to an image, even when frozen solid. Depending on the density of a liquid and the movement of the surrounding objects, bubbles will form and move very slowly, or they will appear instantly and rush to the surface. In the right lighting, bubbles act as a mirror and reflect the colors of the objects floating around them adding a unique perspective.