By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Two new exhibits have opened this fall at the Sternberg Museum of Natural History — one addressing human impact on the environment and the other exposing the inner structures of animals.
A Look Inside is a display of CT scans and X-rays of animal specimens from the Sternberg's Zoology Collection Department.
Rob Graham, a radiologic technologist and nature photographer, made the images at the Ness County Hospital District No. 2 in Ness City.
The exhibit includes 67 images, which include images of animals such as snakes, birds, a tapir, spider monkey, beaver, dall sheep, fish and turtles.
"We are very excited about the exhibit, not only to showcase Rob's artwork, but to educate the public about a wide variety of topics from the scientific uses of medical diagnostic imaging to the unique morphological adaptations of each species depicted," Curtis Schmidt, zoological collections manager, said via email.
Graham had been imaging the specimens for his photography business and selling prints online. Schmidt said he came up with the idea to create an exhibit using the image and it snowballed from there. Graham approached Schmidt to use the Sternberg's specimens in the event the images would be useful for research.
The CT scans and X-rays allow scientists to examine the insides of preserved specimens without damaging them. Even fossils millions of years old can have their internal structures defined, according to the Sternberg.
"We also like to focus some on the simple aesthetic value of the art itself. Many of the pieces just look neat and artistic and that is why we chose them," Schmidt said.
Most of the pieces have text that explains some unique natural history of the organism or evolutionary mystery hidden within the hard structures that are shown, he said.
"I tried to tell a different story with each image to keep the exhibit both educational and entertaining. That was the fun part for me!" Schmidt said.
Along with the images, the Sternberg presented some of the specimens that were imaged.
This can help solidify the scientific use of the imaging within the minds of the people who visit the gallery, Schmidt said.
The exhibit will be on display at the Sternberg through Feb. 1. After that, it will go on tour.
Environmental Impact II
Generally when we think of images of nature, we think of beautiful landscapes, but a new exhibit seeks to portray the dark side of how humans are impacting the environment.
"A lot of times when art is depicting landscape and scenery, we always go for the prettier side," Rachel Unruh, Sternberg marketing and public relations coordinator, said. "That is not always the case. We are always consuming resources.
"This is one approach to bring awareness to 'Hey, look what we are doing to the Earth.' We are causing issues, and we need to make sure we are aware of that, otherwise we will lose not only the beauty, but we end up using up all of the resources."
Environmental Impact II is a collection of sculpture and 2-dimensional artwork from artists across the globe.
As you enter the gallery, a larger-than life-sized basket of blue and silver glass corn spills out on to the floor. Among the 2-foot-long corn cobs are life-size glass cobs and glass ones and zeroes. The artwork is meant to depict genetically modified crops, Unruh said.
Artists Jeff Frost took a series of photographs of both active wildfires in California and the aftermath.
"It looks very pretty," Unruh said of a photograph of a mountain side on fire at night, "but it is also terrifying and sad because of all of the forests they lost and people who lost their homes."
Another one of Frost's photographs depicts the fire raging on the hillside in the background with a church in the foreground.
"It feels almost like, 'Why have you forsaken us?'" Unruh said.
A large painting by San Francisco's Michael Kerbow titled "The Promised Land" depicts a snaking maze of vehicle-packed highways. The billboards all say MORE, and mounds of trash clutter the foreground.
Other artwork depicts a garbage scow piled high with garbage, beautiful fish and bird images splattered with oil and a child sitting on the beach building a sand castle with garbage strewn on the shore behind her.
The exhibit will run through May 15 at the Sternberg.
For more information about the exhibit and the artists, visit www.davidjwagnerllc.com/Environmental_Impact-Sequel.