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Bluff Country Artists Gallery of Spring Grove will exhibit the work of the late Caledonia-Spring Grove area photographer, Greta Ingvalson. Many knew Ingvalson as a portrait and wedding photographer. She did the senior photos of hundreds of high school students. This exhibit will mainly feature the fine art work that was a growing interest for her. It will also include some earlier work to help the viewer better understand the scope of her work.
In Ingvalson’s book Illuminating Photography she wrote, “My digital pieces take up to a year to complete. I start with an idea, drawing or photograph I have created, and then allow the piece to grow. I may photograph many scenes, objects, models, and locations to complete one piece of digital art. It is an absorbing and magical process creating each piece from all that I see and photograph.”
Ingvalson’s work can be enjoyed on many levels. They are carefully constructed. She leaves interpretation open and invites the viewer to ponder over serious, humorous, symbolic and visual issues. There is confusion over which title accompanies each piece and if you ask a friend or family member you will get varied answers. For Ingvalson, each title was worthy because it meant that someone was looking at the work and thinking.
“Ingvalson was one of the first area photographers to see that the job of photographer was changing due to growth of digital photography,” observed Theresa Smerud of La Crosse, close friend and fellow photographer. “Greta made the transition early and mastered the technology. She was determined not to be left behind.”
“Many of her friends were enjoying watching her development as an artist,” according to friend Megan Jones of Spring Grove. “I was planning to buy one of her pieces, but was waiting to see what she did with the images she captured on a trip she and I took to the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico.”
A clue to her ambivalence in naming her work may be found in one of her favorite family activities on her 120 cow dairy farm. Her husband Don and children Eric, Jessie and Devin all continue to enjoy the family tradition of making sure that each cow’s name has multiple interpretations and humor needs to be one of them.
Daughter Jessie carefully selected the pieces for the show, consulting with her father Don and Greta’s mother Mary Jane Hendel, as well as friends and colleagues of her mother. Jessie is an accomplished photographer as well, and often attended photography workshops with her mother so that they could explore new techniques together.
The Ingvalson family will release one limited edition print of her work during the exhibit. The family hopes to make limited editions of more work in the future. They welcome feedback to help them decide which pieces to make available.
The exhibit will open with a public reception on Saturday Dec. 5 from 5-9 p.m. All are invited to attend. The work will be on exhibit through the end of December.
The Bluff Country Artists Gallery is a non-profit organization dedicated to enriching the life of the community, to provide a worthy venue for artists and to provide educational opportunities for persons of all ages. It is member supported and contributions to the gallery are tax deductible and welcome.
For gallery hours:
• Tuesday-Saturday 11-5
• Sunday 12-4
• Other times may be available by appointment.
For more information call Bluff Country Artists Gallery at 507-498-ARTS, toll free at 877-742-2278 or by email at
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