Mountain Mail reports
A manipulated photograph of Sandhill Cranes by photographer/graphic artist Christopher Vest has been selected as the theme art for the 2009 Bosque del Apache Festival of the Cranes. The full-color artwork is being printed as the cover of the festival catalog and will be featured on T-shirts and other festival memorabilia offered at the festival Nov. 17-22.
To create the finished theme artwork, Vest manipulated a color photo taken at Bosque del Apache by Kevin Cole.
Vest describes himself as a self-taught artist with a 25 year background in pen and ink drawing, oil painting, scratch-board, photography and screen printing. In the 1990s, he embraced the computer revolution and developed a way to merge painting and photography in the digital medium.
“In the tradition of Alfred Steiglitz’s ‘Photo-Secessionist’ movement, the photographic image is transformed by intense painterly manipulation to create textures and effects that attempt to bridge the unique properties of photography and painting,” Vest explained.
He has dubbed the process “painted photo montage.”
Vest professionally divides his time between fine art, graphic design and natural history illustration. He is currently contributing to a birding field guide to be released soon by the American Bird Conservancy.
He and his partner Cathy, along with 25 companion animals, live on a six acre farm near Dolores, Colorado. Together, they are restoring the land, formerly badly overgrazed by cattle. In addition, they operate a small animal shelter, rescuing and fostering animals from across the Four Corners area.
Vest’s artwork was chosen to represent the 2009 festival by a committee representing the Friends of the Bosque del Apache, sponsor of the Festival of the Cranes.
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