Vital Waters exhibition review

Sangre De Cristo Arts Center - Vital Waters

I recently had the pleasure of visiting the Vital Waters exhibition, currently on display in the White Gallery at the Sangre De Cristo Arts Center until January 16, 2022. The exhibits are open from 10 AM to 12 PM and 1 PM to 3 PM every Wednesday through Saturday, and adult admission costs $10. Vital Waters was curated by Jeanne Falk Adams, former CEO of The Ansel Adams Gallery, and features landscape photography by Ansel Adams, Ernest H. Brooks II, Dorothy Kerper Monnelly, Scott Campbell, Chuck Davis, Ryuijie, Camille Lenore, and Robin V. Robinson. The collection was put together to exhibit the shared sentiment that our natural wilderness is symbolic of personal and artistic freedom, and to honor the love the photographers had for their homelands.

After purchasing a ticket in the lobby for a fair $8 with the student discount, the staff gave me a rundown of the current exhibits on display in the museum, and suggested I start with Vital Waters on the third floor. Outside the main gallery on the third floor is a small lobby exhibit featuring The Current Flows: Water in the Arid West by photographer Colleen Miniuk. I really enjoyed this small feature, as it has several beautiful, colorful photographs of the Colorado river and other landscapes in Arizona.

    

As I entered the Helen Thatcher White Gallery, the space felt very calm and neutral, which was perfect so as to not compete with the collection of black and white photographs. After a quick glance around to take in the layout of the gallery, I decided to begin with a panel of information on the featured photographers' backgrounds, lives, and works on the front wall to my left. They have also displayed some early Ansel Adams prints next to this section. The rest of the collection was organized by theme rather than artist. Around the outside walls of the gallery were larger and more general or literal themes like waterfalls, reflections, grasslands, and light. Then there were smaller or more conceptual themes on a few inner panels in the gallery, like contemplation and design. The layout flowed to allow everything to be seen easily and the themes connected in a way that felt organized. Each photograph also featured some text, whether it be information about the print, a quote by or about the photographer, or even just a fun fact about Ansel Adams.

    

I have to admit I became absolutely immersed in Adams’ photographs of the waterfalls in Yosemite, and they were definitely some of my favorites in the exhibit. Dorothy Kerper Monnelly is a new artist to me, but I really loved seeing her style immediately come through in this collection. Her snow and ice pattern photos are captivating. I also thought all the platinum palladium prints by Ryuijie and Camille Lenore were so beautiful - it helped me to appreciate the artform of that process so much better to see the brushstrokes in real life.

    

Overall, I definitely recommend going to see Vital Waters if you are able. I think Jeanne Falk Adams chose a really special collection of photographs that not only capture the beauty of our natural surroundings, but also showcase really strong composition and a range of artistic techniques. Nature photography as an art form is probably one of the most broadly appealing, and this exhibit could be enjoyed by a wide range of people, from the very interested in art and design, to the simply interested in nature. Not only that, but your $8-10 gets you access to several other exhibits (including a really fascinating sister-exhibit with Polaroid’s work with Ansel Adams, and a Pueblo flood exhibit) and the entire children’s museum. It’s definitely worth going - as long as you can get there when the exhibits are open.

Works Cited

Sangre de Cristo Arts Center. “Vital Waters.” Exhibitions | Sangre de Cristo Arts Center, 2021. https://www.sdc-arts.org/exhibitions/vital-waters.