Wednesday, May 14th 7:30 – 9 PM Post Theatre
Presentation by Michael Slade -
I have been photographing Great Salt Lake periodically for over 20 years. In the past 4 years I have undertaken a more focused and dedicated effort. I want to tell the story of Great Salt Lake in a new way. I want to show its broad diversity—the good and the bad, the beautiful and the ugly, the ways we have exploited the lake and ways the lake (on its own terms) has affected our lives.
Great Salt Lake's story has many chapters. How to best tell those stories is indeed a challenge There are stories of birds, shrimp, spiders and bison. Stories of ranchers and fishermen, railroads and ancient Americans. Stories of salt and snow, water and waste. These stories are as broad as the lake is wide and as complex as the lake is ancient.
Whether we like it or not, we have left our mark on Great Salt Lake. It is an inescapable and necessary fact that we live in the landscape. Some marks we leave may be regrettable, but other marks are beneficial. And we may not be aware of it, but Great Salt Lake has left its mark on us.
Unfortunately, you are not my intended audience. You and I can see and experience the lake as it is now - as it was when I made these images. In 100 years the things that I have photographed may not be here, so I am creating a document of how the lake is today, to show its beauty, its wonders, and its blemishes.
Fragmities Island On Mud Flat
If your education about the lake leads you to action on any level, then the lake is well served. It is said that good art invites the viewer to ask more questions than it answers.
My career as a photographer has taken me all over the world, and the
tradition of story-telling comes from deep inside my core. My father is a cowboy poet, singer and composer, my mother is a singer and performer. My beginning photography classes were in journalism, and I quickly fell in love with telling stories with images in newspapers and magazines.
I have had a career as a commercial photographer which has been very exciting. Recently however, I returned to school to get my master's degree so that I can teach students photography. To help others develop skills so that they can visually communicate what they want to share has been fulfilling.
This project on the Great Salt Lake started out as some test shots that could point me in the direction I could take for my master's thesis. I quickly found out that this was something that could grab me intellectually for an extended period of time. It has become apparent that this body of work has grown beyond that of a traditional thesis.
I am currently exploring different ways that I can share my message with a larger group of people. My website is a start. It can be seen at: www.gslps.org.
It is my intent that these images have a broad audience and that they are used to educate and inspire those who don't have the opportunity to see the places I have.
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