CLOISTER GALLERY
"For [art and music] are not the thing itself;
they are only the scent of a flower we have not found,
the echo of a tune we have not heard,
news from a country we have never yet visited."
C. S. Lewis
The Cloister Gallery at Grace Cathedral is intended to provide a space for the celebration of the fine arts and to encourage awareness of the deep connections between creativity and spirituality. In keeping with the long-established appreciation of the fine arts in the Anglican spiritual tradition, the Gallery seeks to help people cultivate a fulsome awareness of the relationship between creative expression and human thriving.
The Gallery schedule typically consists of shows dedicated to works by a single artist. Shows usually rotate on a monthly basis. Artists of all styles and backgrounds are invited and encouraged to consider displaying their work at the Gallery.
Now showing: Byron Porter
Byron Porter has had a camera in his hands for nearly his entire life, probably because his grandfather had a portrait studio in his basement and the photo-bug rubbed off on him.
He started like many in the 1970s with the basic point-and-shoot Kodak 110 camera. By the time he was in high school, his camera had evolved to a Minolta 35mm SLR that his church youth group leader had passed on to him. This was the only time he had any ‘formal’ training, taking an intro to photojournalism course at Washburn Rural High School.
The Minolta served him throughout his time at the University of Kansas, while pursuing a degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Computer Science. After a period of dormancy, the photography bug bit hard in the summer of 2004 when he had an ‘epiphany’ of sorts.
He wasn’t drawn to a particular subject matter to photograph, but was drawn to the challenge of capturing subjects that were in motion. That summer, he booked a winter vacation to Hawaii to see the winter surf on the North Shore of Oahu. Prior to the trip, he upgraded to the digital Canon Rebel which released the restriction of needing to buy film, develop it and print then images in order to see the photos.
Hawaii exposed him to some of the most beautiful scenery in the world and to some of the most amazing athletes surfing on some of the most impressive and dangerous waves in the world. The thrill of shooting there was tempered by the limited amount of time that he could be there, which caused him to expand his challenge to photography subjects in motion. As a direct result, he found subjects that are closer to home to provide the challenge.
During this time, he also spent a fair amount of time taking pictures for friends at AKC dog shows. In addition to being a CPA and a hobby photographer, he and his wife have bred and shown AKC German Pinschers since 2010. While the ‘action’ isn’t difficult to photograph, the process helped to form the underlying theme of his photography that continues to this day: Capture Moments; Preserve Memories.
He regularly shares the images he captures on his public Facebook page, Sprayhawk Photography.
