The two photographs below are now a part of the collection of the Midwest Museum of American Art. Recently, the pieces were reviewed and accepted into their collection.
The photographs were donated to the museum by Dr. Steven Conant of Indianapolis, Indiana, a well known collector of modern and contemporary fine art. Dr. Conant is active in several Indiana museums, including serving on acquisitions committees of the Indianapolis Museum of Art and the Midwest Museum of American Art in Elkhart, Indiana. I sincerely thank Dr. Conant for his appreciation of my art and his thoughtful consideration in donating my photographs to the museum.
To say I am thrilled is an understatement. The inclusion of my work into the Midwest Museum of American Art humbles me. Having received this recognition, it personally validates years dedicated to looking at the world through my own prism and sharing it through my photographs. My journey in photography began in 1986 and continues to this day.
The photographs in the museum’s collection are shown below and were made using film in an Ikoflex 2 1/4 camera. I can still vividly remember making these two photographs.
In the heart of the Jemez Mountains lies Cerro Pedernal. Pedernal means flint in Spanish, and this peak was aptly named. The volcanic process that created this butte left plenty of stone around the peak that is perfect for fashioning crude tools. The native peoples of the area used the rock around this mountain for arrowheads and other tools. O’Keeffe called Cerro Perdenal her “favorite mountain.”
The landscape of Northern New Mexico runs the gamut from relatively flat mesas, to high desert, from lush valleys and to alpine peaks. In a moment, the interplay of light, land forms and weather can transform the simplest landscape into an inspiring form that causes pause and reflection.
Ron Kern Photographer and Author 