The majestic sweep of hawk’s wings shadowed across snowy ground was captured by photographer Roberta Murray while she was taking pictures in her own Rocky Mountain House-area backyard.
Now 99 prints of the same haunting image, Scattered to the Wind, will hang in a new hotel in the United Arab Emirates.
The purchase by the new Westin Abu Dhabi Golf Resort and Spa is just the latest coup for Murray, who’s carving out a niche for herself in the world of international fine art photography.
The 47-year-old, who’s had work featured in U.S. photography magazines and American and European art galleries, also recently won a bronze prize in a Paris Prix de la Photographie contest for her portfolio of abstract natural images.
Placing third out of thousands of international submissions “was a thrill,” said Murray, who believes her nature-based photographs are becoming increasingly popular in a world that’s becoming more urbanized.
There’s so much beauty in Central Alberta, she said, “we are so close to the mountains, and we have wildlife and wildflowers here. . . .”
The rural sights that many of us take for granted are uncommon enough to evoke strong emotions in viewers from different parts of the world, Murray added.
“There are so many people who live in cities who don’t get to experience (nature). . . . I’m passionate about the fact you need to preserve it. You can’t lose it.”
Murray believes a viewer’s upbringing and personal experience will shape reactions to her impressionistic images.
For instance, the owners of the Abu Dhabi Westin associate the shadow of the hawk that Murray digitally captured with the falcon, a powerful symbol in their country. “To them, the snow resembles sand,” said Murray, who’s delighted that her Western image has captured the imaginations of people from a vastly different culture and setting.
The Calgary native grew up drawing and painting when she wasn’t taking photos with her dad’s camera.
“As far back as I can remember, I’ve occupied my time with making pictures as an escape from a sometimes harsh world,” writes Murray on her website, www.uncommondepth.com. Her pictures “often represented a bygone era or way of life far removed from reality.”
After moving to the Rocky Mountain House area and getting married, Murray took a correspondence course from the New York Institute of Photography in the late 1980s — before being diverted by motherhood, as well as 14 years in the textile arts.
It was while she was teaching fibre spinning at Olds College that Murray picked up the camera again to experiment with blurred nature images that could give her colour and shape inspirations for her weaving.
“When I’d show friends my inspirations, they really liked the photographs,” recalled Murray.
She started taking pictures for their own sake again about five years ago. And after entering some online photo contests and exhibits, she met another photographer who encouraged her to send her works to Soho and Myriad. The art agency with offices in Atlanta, Los Angeles and London, England, took her on as a client, giving her works more exposure within the hospitality industry.
Besides selling prints to the Abu Dhabi Westin, Murray has photos in hotels in California, Florida, Georgia and Wyoming. Her works have also been sold to collectors in Europe and Australia.
Some of Murray’s photographs can be seen in a group show at Calgary’s Triangle Gallery until Aug. 24. Her images will also be exhibited in a solo show at the Spruce Grove Art Gallery from Aug. 22 to Sept. 12.
Locally, Murray’s works will be part of the fundraising Passionate Conversations group show at the Kiwanis Gallery at the Red Deer Public Library from Oct. 18 to 22.
lmichelin@www.reddeeradvocate.com