In addition to more than a dozen of my photographs, the show includes prints from a talented group of photographic artists and friends that I invited to collaborate on the project: Jerry Bosworth, Franka Mlikota Gabler, Charlotte Hamilton Gibb, David Hoffman, Vidya Kane, and Kerby Smith.
From the Yosemite Renaissance website:
Over the past two months, artist in residence G Dan Mitchell has been photographing Yosemite during the transition from winter into spring. It is an unpredictable time, rich in imagery for photographers as late winter storms challenge the new growth of spring. Wildflowers appear first, poppies and many others. Dogwoods come next, encouraged by warming temperatures and clearing snow. At the same time temperatures suddenly drop and snow falls in unpredictable ways. Daffodils and irises are suddenly covered in snow. G Dan and six other photographers have done their best to capture this magical time in and around Yosemite. The show will include over 40 works documenting the transition. Proceeds from the exhibit will benefit Yosemite Renaissance. Please join us!
Gallery 5
40982 Hwy 41, Suite 5, Oakhurst CA
559-683-5551
New snow partially covers autumn oak leaves along a Yosemite Valley trail
Sometimes in California I can experience at least three seasons on the same day. (I’ve occasionally wondered if I could cram evidence of all four into a single photograph, but so far haven’t figure out how.) For example, it isn’t impossible to find a scene that includes brown autumn leaves, snow, and new growth. A hot autumn day might include fall colors and perhaps a recent snow flurry on high peaks. Travel less than 100 miles from an inland area to the Northern California coast and go from 100+ degree temperatures to cold and wet enough that you might want a pair of gloves. Descend from a snowy peak, through forest, and end up in desert.
By those standards, this photograph perhaps falls short, as only two seasons are represented — the winter snow flurry and the brown leaves of autumn oak trees. It was not snowing as I made the photography, but it had snowed just a few hours earlier here in Yosemite Valley, and as I hiked along the base of granite cliffs and past conifers and oaks there were still places where the snow had not melted.
The 31st annual Yosemite Renaissance Exhibit opens this weekend in Yosemite Valley. Come on by if you are in the park! The free opening Artists Reception is on Friday, February 26 at 5:30-7:30pm in the Visitor Center Gallery. The show then runs from Saturday, February 27 though May 1.
Yosemite Renaissance features artists who work in and around Yosemite and the Sierra. It includes a range of media — photographs, painting, ceramics, sculpture, and more.
I’m honored that one of my photographs was again included in the exhibit — for the fourth year in a row. This time it is a photograph I made at Devil’s Postpile National Monument last year: “Basalt Columns, Lichen, Autumn Plants”
“Fractured Granite, Reflection” — The base of a rugged granite wall reflected in the still surface of a sub-alpine Sierra Nevada lake
Today I am reprising a photograph that I shared previously since it is part of the Yosemite Renaissance XXIX exhibit opening this weekend in the Yosemite Museum Gallery in The Valley.
An exhibition of contemporary art of Yosemite and the Sierra Saturday, March 1 to Sunday, May 11, 2014 Yosemite Museum Gallery, Yosemite National Park
The first event of the show is tonight…
The public is invited to the Awards Reception, Friday, February 28 from 5:30 to 7:30 PM
Perhaps I’ll see you there!
Now, to the text of the original post, plus a more recent addition…
The base of a rugged granite wall reflected in the still surface of a sub-alpine Sierra Nevada lake
A few days ago I returned from a 9-day trip into the back-country of Kings Canyon National Park. I was one of a group of four photographers who traveled to a remote location at about 11,000′, where we remained for more than five days, photographing the surrounding terrain morning and evening. We followed the common routine of such work – up before dawn and off to investigate and photograph some valley or lake, back by mid or late morning for breakfast, generally hanging out and doing camp chores during the midday period when the light is often less exciting, then back out in the late afternoon for a few more hours of exploration and photography before returning to camp for a post-sunset dinner. Unlike a typical backpack trip, where one rarely stays in the same place for long, we remained in the same camp for six nights, allowing us to really get to know the surrounding area very well.
With so much time, we were frequently able to return to places that we had already visited – perhaps coming back in the evening after a morning visit, returning to try again to catch a subject that didn’t have the right light the first time, or shooting the subject in various conditions ranging from clear skies to rain. This bit of interesting rock was next to a lake that I walked to on a number of occasions, and on this morning I arrived when the lake was still in shadow but illuminated by light reflected from nearby rock faces. Because it was so early the air was very still, allowing me to photograph this very sharp reflection of the fractured granite cliff where it entered the water. A bit of vegetation just above the waterline has taken on early fall colors.
Addendum: It occurred to me last week that there is a (perhaps tenuous?) connection between this photograph – with its theme of a vertical rock face above placid water – and this one by Ansel Adams that I had an early connection to: http://www.christies.com/lotfinder/photographs/ansel-adams-lake-precipice-frozen-lake-and-5056399-details.aspx – I have a personal connection to the place, which I wrote about here: https://gdanmitchell.com/2010/01/14/a-photograph-exposed-submerged-boulders-precipice-lake
G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.
Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.
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