Unexpected Nature Portraits Are Focus of Next Gallery Exhibit

Published 04.20.2015

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The Gallery at Penn College

Intimate and unexpected portraits of nature will fill The Gallery at Penn College for its next exhibit, “Sim-Biotic,” running March 17 through April 23.

Spotlighting the works of photographer Robin Germany, the exhibition brings together three bodies of work representing the Texas artist’s investigations of the natural world as it reflects and deflects its human neighbors.

Through the lens of philosophy, Germany makes photographs that inquire into the nature of being human and the humanness of nature. “Surface Tension,” “A Difficult Nature” and “On The Brink” are the series offering a view of nature inextricably intertwined with humans and laden with implications for the future. Germany’s works are achieved through a variety of photographic equipment including a high dynamic range camera secured in underwater housing and a 120-pinhole camera.

A meet-the-artist reception is set for 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 26, featuring a 5:30 p.m. gallery talk. The reception and exhibit are open to the public and free of charge.



Photographer Robin Germany's image "Holly Lake: Buds" is part of a series of visuals captured by using a high dynamic range camera secured in underwater housing. Located on the third floor of Pennsylvania College of Technology’s Madigan Library, The Gallery at Penn College is open Sundays, 1 to 4 p.m.; Tuesdays and Thursdays, 2 to 7 p.m.; and Wednesdays and Fridays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The gallery will be closed April 3-5.

Germany grew up in the small town of Friendswood, Texas, and earned a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy from Tulane University and a Master of Arts in photography from the University of North Texas. She is an associate professor of photography at Texas Tech University.

The artist’s photographs have been exhibited throughout the U.S. and are included in the collections of the Center for Photography at Woodstock, the Boise Art Museum and the Center for Creative Photography in Tucson.

Germany’s “Surface Tension” photographs were made in waters in Texas and reveal the juxtapositions between land structures and water life ranging from bucolic to disturbing.

Germany's "Galveston: Pink Doll"“Beneath the transparent border between water and air,” Germany said, “I am confronted with the daily life of the water, including delicate plant life, hidden habitats and crude human incursions in the form of trash and pollution. … I am acutely aware of the value of water. … These photographs provide a close and unexpected portrait of the most important natural resource in our lives, in order to provoke engagement with this crucial issue.”

Photographs featured in her “On The Brink” series are made with a 120-pinhole camera and digital prints coated with tinted encaustic. “A Difficult Nature” photographs are created from scanned 120-film negatives and digitally colored.

Also on exhibit in the gallery’s lobby during the same timeframe as “Sim-Biotic” is a collection of aerial photographs captured by Penn College student Maxwell A. Davert, a senior in building science and sustainable design from Greene, Rhode Island. Davert has gathered numerous still and video images using a quadcopter with an integrated high-definition camera. Some of his videos will be playing in the lobby, as well. Most of the images will be of the Penn College campus.

In addition to serving as an educational resource for Penn College students and a cultural asset to the college and community, the gallery is dedicated to promoting art appreciation through exhibitions of contemporary art.

For more about Penn College, a national leader in applied technology education and workforce development, email the Admissions Office or call toll-free 800-367-9222.