Discoveries: Overlooked Beauty

Jo Levine

May 26, 2021 to June 19, 2021

“Discoveries” began with a sweetgum tree ball and a dried magnolia fruit cone that I found on my path during a walk last fall.  Struck by their photographic possibilities, I put them in my purse and took them home.  After that, every walk had me scanning the ground, collecting fallen leaves, seeds, nuts, and other vegetation that most people would rake from their lawns and sidewalks without a second thought.  When spring arrived, I added fresh leaves and flower buds to my collection.  I took their “portraits” against a simple black background in my studio, discovering how my subjects’ textured surfaces, bends, and curves made them look dramatically different depending on how I positioned them to capture the light.    

This show is a continuation of one of my goals as a photographer:  to inspire people to look more closely at the world around them, to find the beauty hiding in plain sight.