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Between Worlds

Between Worlds
SECRET CODE – Undisclosed Location, CA. Photo: Henthorne. EarthScape: Andres Amador

SECRET CODE – Undisclosed Location, CA. Photo: Henthorne. EarthScape: Andres Amador

 

Henthorne is an international award-winning artist who works in the medium of high contrast black-and-white photography. He currently resides in Florida, but spends many months abroad, capturing the intersection of ocean and earth. ”Between Worlds” is his latest series of images and is a visual journey where earth, sea and sky unite.

For this body of work, Henthorne collaborated with Andres Amador.  Amador is an EarthScape artist who uses natural materials in wild settings to create breathtaking works of art. His canvas, a wide expanse of beach at low tide. The resulting murals are enormous, spanning up to 100,000 square feet. His creations are a testimony to — and a celebration of—impermanence. Within minutes of finishing a creation, the returning tide resets the canvas.

Selected photographs from the Between Worlds series will be exhibited at the Williams McCall Gallery, 110 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach, FL from December 3 to January 6.  On December 3, 6-9 PM, there will be an opening reception and book signing featuring the artists Henthorne and Andres Amador.

Regarding the photographs, founding partner Gail Williams says, “Balancing between minimalism and abstraction, this series captures a new intersection of ocean and earth – blending it, and in some instances, nearly obscuring it. Water, clouds and shorelines are key elements comprising his large-format prints. Henthorne strives to create an experience that lures the viewer deep into his images, over and over, inviting limitless contemplation.”

 

ORACLE – Inglenook, CA. Photo: Henthorne. EarthScape: Andres Amador

ORACLE – Inglenook, CA. Photo: Henthorne. EarthScape: Andres Amador

 

 

Between Worlds – both the exhibition and the book — is the result of the collaboration of two artists, two different mediums, two vastly different relationships with time—and one singular vision. The creators meet at the junction of earth and ocean in a way that is truly unique. In nature. And in art.

Amador’s massive beach murals evoke the message of transience, inviting the viewer to embrace the elemental, fleeting nature of his work—to be here now.

Henthorne’s stunning long-exposure “fotographic” imagery captures cumulative time — he fuses together a series of “nows”— to produce images that take us beyond what the eye can see, and into otherworldly scenes that captivate the imagination.

The tools each artist uses provide another example of extremes. For Henthorne, a sophisticated, expensive Leica camera system, a collection of lenses and a tripod. For Amador, a simple, inexpensive garden rake, a few lengths of twine and a stick.

 

PING – Stinson Beach, CA. Photo: Henthorne. EarthScape: Andres Amador

PING – Stinson Beach, CA. Photo: Henthorne. EarthScape: Andres Amador

 

 

When Henthorne first approached Amador with the idea of working together, the two artists hit it off, immediately sensing their collaboration could yield innovative and spectacular results.

Enter Emmy award-winning documentary filmmaker Brad Kremer of Cross Media International. Right away, Brad knew they were onto something. He says, “When I first heard about the Between Worlds project I thought it was an amazing opportunity to create something new with these two incredibly talented individuals. It is rare these days to find something truly original . . . and that’s what we have with this first of its kind collaboration.”

 

INTRODUCTION TO BETWEEN WORLDS:   1:16 min.




Introduction to Between Worlds.

 

The three artists scoured the rugged beaches of Northern California, scouting areas suitable for Amador’s EarthScapes, Henthorne’s time-bending fotography and Kremer’s sense of what makes a good film location. Aiding their efforts was Amador’s wife, Ember DeQuincy, carrying the couple’s son, the ever-smiling Kavi.

Of Henthorne’s compelling images, his friend Joseph Gamble, Professor of Photography, University of Tampa, explains, “Successful imagery comes not from serendipity, but from research long before traveling to a distant location. After weeks of advance planning and research, Henthorne is able to predetermine and eliminate variables of light direction and composition and then fine-tune his approach once on location. Nature and the complexities of weather become the arbiter of success and failure.”

Over a span of four months, the newly formed team met at regular intervals to create what would become the Between Worlds project; a documentary film that chronicles their work and shares revealing aspects of the lives of the creators; the mesmerizing beach murals, the ethereal, time-morphing imagery, and the book.

The challenging thing about working with nature is that nature is always in charge. Sophisticated satellite weather forecasts and tide charts amount to no more than somebody’s “best guess” when it comes to what the weather will actually do, or when the tide will shift, or the fog will roll in, pulling a curtain on the whole thing. Still, the team spent countless hours studying maps and weather data in order to select dates, times and locations that would hopefully allow for the best artistic outcome.

They quickly learned that “best artistic outcome” is a nebulous thing.

For Amador, it means a calm, clear day and an extreme low tide on a wide, gently sloping beach, with grainy sand that’s not too dark and is generally free of rocks.

For Henthorne, chaos is a key element, meaning clouds and wind and waves. When violent weather is captured over an extended exposure, the resulting imagery is that of calm. Of depth.

Seldom did each artist get exactly what he wanted.

After selecting the location, the team calculated the optimum timeline for each photo shoot, including equipment staging, Amador’s EarthScaping, and Henthorne’s  epic-exposure photography.

From a thick portfolio of Amador’s designs, they’d narrow it down to two or three prospects.  Using an iPad, Amador would sketch a mock-up of how he imagined the EarthScape might unfold, taking into account the natural features of the setting, the amount of daylight and beach available, and the vantage point from which Henthorne would be shooting, among other factors.

Sometimes, even with all the planning, the plan just didn’t come together as artfully as the team had envisioned. That’s part of the creative process.

Henthorne puts it like this, “When you do nothing, you get nothing. Guaranteed. Sure, there are times when I don’t get what I want out of a day’s work. But I always shoot. It takes discipline, and that’s important. You can’t succeed if you don’t show up. There’s nothing random about that.”

 

SQUARE ROOTS – Pete’s Beach, CA. Photo: Henthorne. EarthScape: Andres Amador

SQUARE ROOTS – Pete’s Beach, CA. Photo: Henthorne. EarthScape: Andres Amador

 

 

While collaborating on Between Worlds, each artist learned from the other’s work. Amador had been producing sprawling EarthScapes, capturing images that conveyed the scale and magnitude of the completed piece by sending a small camera high overhead via a remote-controlled drone quad-copter.

There was no way for Henthorne’s epic-exposure techniques to be accomplished in this way; in order to bend and blend time, his camera must remain still, his lens focusing on a fixed point. This meant Amador had to work closer, tighter. It forced him to scale down the size and scope of his earthly canvas.

Prior to the Between Worlds project, Henthorne rarely included the beach in his fotos. He’s all about movement — the churning sea, the windswept clouds, the changing light. As he explains, “The beach is boring. But not when Amador’s on it.” Adding Amador’s EarthScapes into the scene allowed Henthorne to step back, to extend his gaze, and to include the beach as a key element in his new fotographic series.

The Between Worlds team also shares a passion for environmental stewardship. A portion of the proceeds from the Between Worlds project will be shared with the following 501(c)3 nonprofit organizations in support of their environmental stewardship  efforts:

Save Our Shores.org — a marine conservation organization in Santa Cruz, California, their mission is caring for the marine environment through ocean awareness, advocacy, and citizen action.

One Percent For The Planet.org — a global movement of more than 1,200 member companies in 48 countries, all donating at least 1% of annual sales to sustainability initiatives, 1% for the Planet companies have given more than $100 million back to Blue, investing in positive environmental  change.  ♦