Islands Illuminated: A Journey in Infrared

On display for the months of November and December. Photographs by Guy Biechele.

Image taken of an island in black & white hues by photographer, Guy Biechele.

Islands Illuminated: A Journey in Infrared
Meet the artist Tuesday, November 12, 5:00-7:00 pm.

“Islands are the world’s most eloquent landscapes, small enough to reflect the hand of time, vast enough to tell the story of existence.” -Guy Biechele

Join the Athol Public Library on Tuesday, November 12, from 5:00-7:00 as we welcome photographer Guy Biechele. Light refreshments will be available and all are welcome.

"Islands are special places. They are self-contained, unattached to the larger world, and often shine like jewels in the reflecting water that surrounds them. We feel different when we are on an island. For those of us who live on the mainland, on islands we have escaped from our routines. We are energized by the vitality of the water that surrounds us, and feel a little closer to the mystery that is our lives.

In this exhibition I have tried to present some of the magic moments I have captured on islands over the years. I have always experienced a special light on islands. This is not surprising since islands are surrounded by water, reflecting light onto them from all directions. This results in an illumination unlike the light we experience on the mainland. In this series of photographs, I explore the heightened and surreal beauty of these island scenes, revealing a world beyond the visible spectrum. The infrared light captured in these images transforms the familiar. Trees and clouds glow with ethereal whites, skies deepen into dramatic blacks, and water reflects light in ways the human eye cannot normally perceive.

Infrared photography allows us to experience these island scenes as realms of heightened intensity where normal landscapes and objects take on an otherworldly glow. Each photograph acts as a visual poem, evoking a sense of isolation, serenity, and mystery that islands often inspire, but with a lens that reveals the unseen.

These images invite the viewer to step beyond the ordinary and engage with the landscapes in a new, unfamiliar light. Through this exhibition I hope to convey the extraordinary beauty that infrared light reveals. This invisible yet profound spectrum speaks to the quiet magic of island landscapes.

In these images, revealed through infrared light, we are reminded that there is always more to see, more to feel, and more to understand beneath the surface."

Free and open to the public.