‘Come closer …’ is a personal exhibition of photography by Fivizzano based photographer, Nigel Fawcett, that invites visitors to reconsider how they perceive some of the less-loved creatures and flowers that are all around us. Each image reveals elements of beauty and character that might normally be missed and which is only achievable by getting up close and personal.
Beauty or beast?
This could be interpreted as an opportunity to see beauty in something that we previously saw only as ugly, scary, or just plain ordinary. But, if that were the case, then the inclusion of butterflies, flowers and, perhaps, dragonflies, would be out of place here. No, the real intention is to illustrate something far more objective.
What shape or colour were the eyes of that creature you just saw? Indeed, how many eyes did it have? Were its legs hairy? What was the texture of its skin? Was it a fly or a bee? A bee or a wasp? A butterfly or a moth? These questions boil down to one word — observation.
To see or to observe
In ‘A Scandal in Bohemia’, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle uses the word notice as a substitute for observe in the passage where Sherlock Holmes teaches Dr. Watson the difference between seeing the stairs and noticing how many steps there are. The lesson being that we all too often see but fail to observe.
Look for the unexpected
In the image of the Drone Fly, the composition and colours were deliberately chosen to reinforce how successfully it mimics a bee. The Wool Carder bee, Anthidium florentinum, has colours that we normally associate with wasps. The jumping spider looks at us with her six big baby eyes looking more cuddly than frightening. The Urospermum dalechampii is not just another common yellow flower, it’s a flaming torch when backlit by the sun. So, look carefully at the tongue of the Six-spot Burnet, at the skin of the lizard, at the fringe around the wings of the Adonis Blue, at everything!
Please note: this exhibition and its associated gallery are now closed.
