Kathy Browning’s latest photographic exhibit, New Zealand, was something of an exercise in patience and perseverance.
It was originally supposed to run at Artists on Elgin in downtown Sudbury, but that venue closed. Then it was supposed to run at One Sky, also in the downtown, but that venue also closed.
Browning then arranged to have the exhibit shown at Sudbury Theatre Centre, with the support of Art Gallery of Sudbury, but then STC shut down due to COVID-19.
The exhibit then moved to the Art Gallery of Sudbury (AGS), with an exhibition planned for last fall, but it was moved back several times, again due to the pandemic.
With pandemic restrictions loosened, New Zealand is now finally being shown at the AGS this summer.
“It took a lot of work and a lot of time to get this exhibition, but it looks great,” Browning said.
People can pre-book a time with AGS to view Browning’s exhibit along with an exhibit of the work of master Inuit artist Kenojuak Ashevak. Both exhibits run until Sept. 5.
Browning spent 32 days photographing in New Zealand in 2018, taking 15,240 photographs on the North and South islands.
Following this, she spent a year looking at and editing her photographs.
An academic who retired in 2020 as a professor in Laurentian University’s school of education, where she trained visual arts teachers, Browning made the exhibit as part of her academic work, in which she sought to visually tell the story of New Zealand.
New Zealand is “absolutely amazing,” she said. “It’s so lush and beautiful … When we were there, we thought let’s move here. It’s so beautiful.”
Browning’s artist statement said the landscapes she visited included hiking tracks in magical, lush forests with gnarly moss-covered trees, tussock-covered slopes and volcanic outcrops with groves of eucalyptus trees, spherical boulders, spectacular coastal views of long gold and black sand beaches, and intense aqua blue lakes.
There are remote, unspoiled wilderness of snow-capped mountain peaks, glaciers, fiords, and rainforests, she said. There are also treetop trail’s metal walkways that tower high above the emerging canopy of temperate lowland rainforest.
If you’re interested in visiting the Art Gallery of Sudbury this summer, pre-book your visit by phoning 705-675-4871.
