Trees are among the most common objects we see, and Effie Malley hopes her photographs of trees will lead people to look at them differently. She has been photographing the trees at Odiorne Point State Park for two years. Her work has culminated in a solo exhibit of twenty-five color photographs, The Woods of Odiorne: Photographs by Effie Malley, at the Portsmouth Public Library, 175 Parrott Ave, Portsmouth, NH through June 1.
Join us May 8 from 6:30-8:30 PM for an Artist's Reception. Light refreshments will be provided.
Malley says that the exhibit provides no sequential narrative; rather, she hopes the photos convey the experience of awe she felt being around these trees she came to know. As a climate activist, she has learned the important role trees play in reducing carbon. As a former and budding botanist, she continues to learn about the remarkable ways trees communicate and share resources with each other.
Malley grew up in the suburbs of New York City, and frequented art museums. She took photographs through childhood and was photo editor of the high school newspaper. She studied photography at the University of New Hampshire with Richard D. Merritt. Later she worked at the UNH Photo Services Department and the UNH Art Museum. She currently lives in Portsmouth and makes digital photographs in color and black and white. She has been a member of the New Hampshire Society of Photographic Artists (soon to be renamed NH Center for Photography) for three years and is grateful for the opportunities—sharing work, printing, attending webinars—that NHSPA /NH Center for Photography offers.
About her plans Malley says, “I’m not sure I can stop photographing trees. My work has alternated between somewhat abstract photographs and landscapes inspired by 19th century painters. I may continue the more abstract work, but in black and white. I also hope to explore some still lifes.” She will continue her documentary work about the impacts of climate change.
What drives her work is the process: she refers to the intense concentration where she can lose track of time shooting and processing images. She is fascinated by the inherent contradiction of a photograph catching the ephemeral while being impermanent itself. She gravitates to digital photography. Although she loved her years spent in a darkroom and particularly misses the experience of the print rising in the developer—so real and yet so miraculous—the accessibility of digital allows her to concentrate on the image.
You can see more of her photographs on Instagram @efMalley.
Information about the exhibit at Portsmouth Public Library and jpgs of the images at https://www.cityofportsmouth.com/library/galleries/woods-odiorne-photographs-effie-malley-2024
