Shawnee Forest photos on display in Paducah
The Shawnee National Forest's stunning and sometimes subtle beauty will be featured in a photography exhibition opening this month in Paducah, Ky.
Kolb's work will be on display weekends in March and April at the Maiden Alley Cinema Gallery, 112 Maiden Alley, in Paducah. Admission is free.
The images represent four years of photo excursions on the 270,000-acre Shawnee. The forest straddles the lower portion of Illinois-- stretching from the Mississippi to the Ohio rivers -- and is the state's sole national forest.
It boasts cypress swamps, delicate wildflowers, towering bluffs, 200-year-old oaks, savannas and everything from wild turkeys to bald eagles and bobcats.
Kolb says he strives to capture the region's aesthetic nature in hopes of encouraging folks to make wise choices about the forest's future.
"We have wild places in the Shawnee National Forest which must be protected and cherished," he says. "Edward Abbey wrote: 'You stand for what you stand on!' I stand on and in the Shawnee."
A limited number of Kolb's prints -- in a variety of sizes, many of which will be matted and framed -- will be offered for sale.
To view the photographs, visit the Maiden Gallery Cinema from 6 to 10 p.m. Fridays, 2-10 p.m. Saturdays and 2-7 p.m. Sundays. The gallery's phone number is 270/442-7723.
If traveling from Southern Illinois, take Exit 4 off Interstate 24. Turn east on Business Loop 24 to Broadway. Turn left on Broadway. The Maiden Alley Cinema Gallery is located on the right between First and Second streets in the heart of downtown Paducah.
- Paula M. Davenport
March 6, 2002
"The Shawnee" exhibit will encompass 27 black-and-white, limited-edition originals by landscape photographer Gary P. Kolb, a photography professor at the University.
