Article by Cheryl Tischer
Local Artist – June 2005 – Colorado Central Magazine
IT’S NOT THAT FAR from the manicured green neighborhoods of Ames, Iowa, to the snowkissed peaks of Chaffee County. But when measured in creative leaps and personal gains, the change in location has been an incredible journey for Carol Cartwright. For Cartwright, a photographer who moved to Salida from Ames in the winter of 2004, the distance has also unleashed a productive flow and heightened her passion for art.
An elementary teacher, with Masters and Specialists degrees in Education from Drake University in Des Moines, Cartwright taught third grade classes famous for their multi-project atmosphere. A single academic topic would be explored with reading, art, drama, spelling, and make-believe field trips. She still loves to teach.
Her three sons have also inspired her art. Cartwright remembers countless afternoons laughed away at home with her boys, baking cookies, painting, planting, doing clay projects, pasting, gluing, and making huge messes in the kitchen. Her love of teaching and her role as a devoted mother crossed paths, and her sons were willingly enlisted as her first photographic subject matter. Picture this one: a deep Easter snowfall, three red-cheeked, moon-booted youngsters posed with a hand-crafted, pink-eared snow bunny, while soggy-hatted Mom clicked shots.
AFTER ENROLLING in photography courses at a nearby community college, Cartwright peered down a macro lens one fateful afternoon in 1993 and was immediately seduced by the stunning vision presented. A spark of acknowledgment introduced her to a new universe filled with rich colors and brilliant imagery, and she knew that she could interpret her new vision for everyone to enjoy.
Cartwright’s personal expressive outlet was defined, and there was no going back. ” I HAVE to do photography! ” she says.
Cartwright finds abundant and diverse natural subject material in the hills and arroyos of this valley. Some of her favorite wildflower fields are found in the Cottonwood Pass area. Wide vistas and deep shady aspen groves offer both close-up and wide angle photographic landscapes.
” Foose’s Creek has beautiful cone flowers and daisies in the early summer,” she says. Boss Lake Reservoir is “fabulous” as another place to photograph alpine flowers. She likes the Alpine Trail above St. Elmo too. Cartwright’s reputation locally is steadily becoming that of portraiteur of flowers. “I photograph flowers because they are sensual in their softness and shape. They spark up the landscape with their colors; they draw you to them with their fragrance; they are naïve in their beauty; and they are temporary in their blooming.”
Wildflower compositions however, are only one of her visual offerings. Horses, running, grazing, or working on cattle drives are another – a dynamic contrast to the soft blossom pictures. Her Western gallery includes still lifes with leather boots, working cowboys, longhaired women in ranch gear, and parched, deserted sheds and barns. Cartwright recently sold some Western images to a family from Maui. Visiting Salida, they’d seen her holiday 2004 display at Bongo Billy’s Salida Café and purchased two strong, romantic images to grace the walls of their Breckenridge home. The images remind them of ranch life in Hawaii.
CARTWRIGHT’S landscapes are another topic. She’s out every weekend that the weather permits, skiing or hiking in the mountains, photographing with a vengeance. Waterfalls, cathedral forests, sunsets, snow – scapes: Cartwright composes each image for her own taste, eager to share the printed versions with other people. She also has amazing shots of antique roof lines in the Czech Republic.
A Cartwright photography show draws the viewer into her vision. Wild horses race past in primitive, pre-dawn light. Seductive folds of soft petals in extreme close-up are sensuous and erotic. Misty landscapes imply time-travel to the plush bank of an unspoiled stream or the shady footpath through a medieval forest.
Cartwright prefers to handle all aspects of her art. She rarely uses digital manipulation because the natural world produces such vibrant material. She scans her slides and sends a CD to Fine Print Imaging in Ft. Collins for printing. Most of her finished works are giclee on sheets of canvas, as large as 3′ by 5′. A giclee is printed using pigmented inks, resulting in rich colors and excellent longevity – approximately 100 years. They are sprayed with a coating for UV protection and water resistance and may be framed without glass. Each image comes with a certificate of authenticity and can be ordered in various sizes. Cartwright will stretch the canvas pieces on stretcher bars and if she wants to frame them, Nonie Payne of Willow Tree Frame Shop in Salida does the job.
Dozens of juried art festivals have invited Cartwright to exhibit. Events range from a one-woman show for the Chinese “Year of the Horse” at the Octagon Center for the Arts in Ames, to a national display at the West Palm Beach Photographic School in Del Ray, Florida. Cartwright has also been published in several publications, including Art For The Home, 2004-2005, a stunning, heavy resource guide for designers at the national level.
HER ART ALSO graces many retail spaces, and is currently at Calamity Jane’s on F St., Classic Kitchen Center on G St., and Tangles Salon on E. 13th St., all in Salida, and at Blind Ambition in Buena Vista. Cartwright has also showcased in New Jersey, Illinois, Oregon, Florida, South Dakota, and in several towns in Colorado. Her many awards include First and Second place in photography in the local Art of The Rockies Open Awards Art Show last summer, and the Good Samaritan Hospital in Lafayette owns a permanent collection of Cartwright’s flowers, acquired in 2004.
Despite all of her previous accomplishments, Cartwright is jubilant over her relocation to Salida. She is impressed by the amount of talent here and the quality of local creations. She says that the rich atmosphere of creativity in Salida “encourages us to experiment with acceptance” in all forms of expression, as well as to excel in our chosen media. Cartwright feels a palpable energy that she is ecstatic to be a part of. She has also expanded her creative outlets by writing poetry since settling here, and is now part of a writer’s exchange.
In the past, Cartwright sharpened her skills by enrolling in workshops with heavy-hitting professionals around the world. The photographic sessions, the technical knowledge, and the camaraderie encouraged her to learn more and to photograph more. Therefore, she understands the value of the workshop experience, and will be offering her own intense weekend and one-day seminars soon. For anyone interested in joining Cartwright for a class, seminars will be posted on cartwrightphotography.com, where the Cartwright Gallery can be enjoyed.
See Cartwright’s photographic images at the Salida ArtWalk from June 24 – 27 in Steve O’Neill’s Pilates Studio at the corner of F Street and Sackett Avenue. The studio will also be showing the works of several other local artists, and Cartwright will be on hand to discuss her work and to meet lovers of art.
Cheryl Tischer is a kitchen designer by trade, a jewelry designer by creative necessity, a violist by musical inclination, and writes by a sixty-watt bulb.