So started a remarkably interesting series of images that I made from the extraordinary fruits, vegetables and flowers at the farm.
He invited me to visit the farm to see if there was anything that might be of interest to me to photograph.
I replied that I thought it was the Indigo Rose, to which he replied, “Yes, it is!” and so revealed his involvement in developing that particular variety at the Vegetable Breeding Program at OSU. Jim Myers asking about a certain variety of tomato depicted in one of my photographs shown at Portland International Airport. My two entries both came from this experience: A few years back, I received an email from Dr. You can read all about the building itself in this fascinating article in the New York Times, “A Super Building for Fragile Times”.Ģ020 Art About Agriculture Competition and Exhibition: Tension/Harmonyģ7th Annual Art About Agriculture Competition and Exhibition at OSU Corvallis Oregon, Giustina Gallery/ The LaSells Stewart Centerĭeb Stoner | Haskap Berries from Shinji's Farm | Photography: dye sublimation on aluminum An old friend, Gary Rogowski of the Northwest Woodworking Studio, sour ced Oregon white oak, milled it and built an incredible hand carved frame for my still life photograph, that at 48”x 66”, has a powerful presence in its new home. Researching the beautiful creature’s habitat brought me introductions to wonderful people, including Carolyn Menke at the Institute of Applied Ecology Lynda Boyer at Heritage Seedlings Victor Berthelsdorfer, a landowner who had the Kincaid lupine on his property, and taught me much about photographing tiny fast moving insects. I worked with the theme of the endangered Fender’s Blue Butterfly, endemic to the Willamette Valley, and dependent on food and nectar sources that themselves were endangered. In 2020, I entered a call for public art for the new Oregon State Treasury Resiliency Building, made it through the finals, and although the project went to another, I was offered a commision from the committee.