RIVER DRAGONS
and OTHER REFLECTIONS
about Carol Macy and Roger Ingraham

   

 

Roger Ingraham

One of the great assignments in photography is to select a subject and to photograph it again and again.  Roger’s subject was streams and rivers in autumn.  In time his compositions progressed from scenes of trees and streams of color to detailed close-ups revealing abstractions of pure colors and exciting shapes.

Roger was schooled in Physics, Mathematics, and Philosophy.  He has been a curriculum developer and teacher of Mathematics and Computer Science at the college and secondary levels.  Roger has enjoyed an extensive career in computers, and he conducted a computer camp with young people for 11 years.  After trying professional photography when he was 30, he discovered that most professionals no longer seem to enjoy the craft when having to support a family and household, and so instead he has pursued photography for fun, for learning, and for the joy of the art form.

Even though "River Dragons" is Roger's first book of photographs, it is much more than that in the dance with Carol Macy's writings.

 

 

Carol Macy

For the past 35 years, Carol Macy has led children, teens, adults, and educators in drama workshops and in performances in schools and at conferences throughout the country, including workshops at Columbia University, Bank Street College, Dartmouth, and at The School for International Training in Vermont.  Carol’s research and her practice have shown her that there is clearly a relationship between theatre experiences and the development of greater self-esteem in participants.  This, she believes, happens in large part when there is an unspoken message shared between facilitator and learner that says, “You can do this!  I believe in you.”
For decades Carol has involved students in writing and dramatizing poetry to music, and she especially loves using visual art as a springboard in bringing forth the poet in others.  For most of her life, Carol has written to images, and several years ago she began writing poetry to Roger Ingraham’s photography.  In the wee hours of a December morning, the idea came to do something with the river dragons’ poem that had once been written to a photograph taken by Roger. Looking closely at the picture, Carol imagined individual characters swimming in the water. 
The stories that evolved contain messages that will, hopefully, reach both young and young-at-heart readers: you are a significant part of this magnificent earth.  You belong.  It is Carol’s hope that the poetry and stories will inspire a sense of wonder about the natural world and our relationship to everything around us. 

For more about Carol Macy please visit: www.carolmacy.com.

 
 

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