By C.J. Murphy
For The Parsons Advocate
Famous landscape photographer Ansel Adams once said, “Photograph not only what you see but also what you feel.”
Those sentiments were expressed in spectacular form in the images captured of area landscapes and displayed on 40 inch-by-60 inch canvas prints during the second annual Photography Exhibition at the Blackwater Short-term Rehabilitation Center of Cortland Acres on Sept. 21.
Approximately 130 images were submitted by the Tucker County Photography Club for initial consideration. Photographers culled through thousands of their own personal images framed through the lens of their cameras. Two dozen of those images would ultimately be selected by professional photographer Martin Radigan, whose works have been used by well-known organizations and a wide range of publications.
The 14 images that were selected, premiered at a planned gathering at the Blackwater Short-term Rehabilitation Center of Cortland Acres. Another 10 images were printed for the renovated corridors at Cortland. More than 80 people gathered to witness the unveiling and participate in the live auction for the previous year’s selections and some items of true woodworking artistry.
David Miller, president of the Tucker County Photography Club and source of one of the 2017 selections, was part of the driving force for this year’s contest.
“These hobby photographers will have taken thousands of pictures,” Miller said. “For them to cull down their work to one or two images to submit for consideration shows a genuine effort to support the Cortland Foundation.
“It’s more than just having a print selected to hang. It’s about wonderful support for the foundation from the photographers, to the foundation to the board itself.”
The money raised at the live auction and in the sale of the prints and the handcrafted wood items was more than $4,000. These funds will go to the Cortland Foundation, whose mission is “to secure resources to enhance the health and well-being of the Cortland community.”
Cortland Acres Administrator Beth Clevenger assisted with auction and spoke about success of the event.
“I’m so pleased with the turnout,” Clevenger said. “Dan (Bucher) and David brought this idea to fruition and the community support inside the county as well as outside has been tremendous. It’s truly a wonderful feeling to know so many support the foundation.”
As the group gathered to watch the presentation of each canvas, appreciative murmurs rose as the images were examined. Views from Dolly Sods, North Fork Mountain, The Blackwater River and many other landscapes jumped out of the images in brilliant hues.
Radigan said it was a difficult task of sorting through the volume of submitted photographs to choose the 14 images that would hang in the Blackwater Center for the next year.
“I went through and picked the best of the best and put them in a folder,” Radigan said. “Some of it was how it was framed, or the dramatic lighting. I was looking for something I hadn’t seen before. I had way too many, so I chose the ones that gave me an emotional response, the ones that I could smell the ferns or hear the water. It was very difficult because there were some amazing photos.”
Woodcraft items auctioned off to raise funds for the foundation and were the work of talented craftsmen Tom Dibacco of Hambleton, Mark Warner of Leadmine, and the carpentry class at the Rubenstein Center. The cadets at the center were under the direction of Travis Hamrick.
The wooden clocks, inlaid tables and benches, cutting boards and hall tree were constructed out of timber harvested from the property during construction for an expansion of housing on the Cortland campus. The timber was cut by Paul Yokum Logging, milled by Luke Bucher and kiln dried by Hi-Tek Dry Kiln.
Bucher, development director for Cortland Aces, helped reveal the exhibit.
“We’re truly blessed to live where we do and for the folks who can capture these images to share with all of us,” Bucher said. “We also have some incredible wood craftsmen in the area. The lumber they used came from cherry cut off of Cortland’s property. This is a natural expression for what the foundation is all about, giving and sharing.”
The Cortland Acres campus includes a 94-bed long-term care facility, a new short-term rehabilitation center, inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation programs, rental apartments in Pineview and townhouses in The Pines. For more information call 304-463-4181 or visit www.cortlandacres.org.
