Photographer, musician and multidisciplinary artist Greg Reid has been capturing, through a lens, the wide variety of flowers and creatures he sees in his backyard.
“I have been actively photographing the wild plants and creatures in my neighbourhood since I moved to Wildwood full time in 2011,” said Reid, during an interview with the Peak. “In fact, right now I’m looking out my window at a red-platted woodpecker; it's right there on my maple tree.”
For the month of September, Reid’s work can be seen at Crucible Gallery at 211-5831 Ash Street in Townsite, with a grand opening event on Sunday, September 17, from 4 to 7 pm. The event opening will be a casual wine and cheese gathering with four 75-inch screens on display around the gallery with Reid's filmic/photo creations, alongside an original soundtrack played throughout the gallery. The soundtrack comes from a four-piece band named ALter, which Reid is a part of.
Photographing the wonders of the natural world is not new, but Reid’s work offers a unique twist for viewers to observe.
“Something that came along unexpectedly, I opened the photographs in my video editing program, and I used the artistic tools that are available that creates bend, blur distortion, and in some cases, 3D animation,” said Reid. “I take the beauty of nature and use it as source material for all my creations.
“My idea is to give an abstract presentation of my feelings and how I want to express their [plants and animals] lives; plants themselves are not static and the little creatures can live turbulent and sometimes difficult lives, just like we do.”
Yet, Reid emphasizes that, “the beauty that Mother Nature has bestowed upon [plants and animals] still exists.”
Reid hopes the art he makes adequately expresses that to people who do come and view the work on display at the gallery.
“I was very interested in discovering all the wild plants [in Wildwood], the flora and fauna, and I spent time researching and photographing them,” said Reid. “I built up quite a library.”
Reid said he enjoys living in Wildwood and can’t imagine living anywhere else.
“I love the area and I appreciate the people,” he added. “There is a strong independent spirit here and artistic abilities that people are pursuing; it's a great place to be.”
For more information, go to cruciblegallery.com or youtu.be/H6xqwRr7QYA.
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