The animals captured with a camera by Thomas D. Mangelsen leap to life in his photos.
Mangelsen has spent more than 46 years traversing the globe photographing animals in their native environment and stunning landscapes.
His heightened sense of animal behaviour and ability to wait for the perfect moment is on full display in A Life in the Wild, a collection of 40 of his most iconic work featured at the Bateman Gallery now through May 29. Robert Bateman will join Mangelsen at a virtual opening via Zoom on Thursday, Feb. 4 from 5 to 6 p.m. to discuss art, nature, and life. Visit batemanfoundation.org/event/mangelsen-exhibit-launch for more information.
The exhibit includes Catch of the Day, which is one of the most widely circulated wildlife photographs in history. It captured the exact moment a spawning salmon tried to leap over a small waterfall on the Brooks River in Alaska and soared into the waiting jaws of a massive brown bear.
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The Bateman Gallery is the perfect fit for Mangelsen’s work, considering the influence Robert Bateman’s art had on Mangelsen when he was young.
“It was 1969, I was 23 and had just graduated from college,” Mangelsen said in a media release. “I hadn’t yet begun photographing, (I was a late bloomer), but I was keenly aware and drawn to Robert Bateman’s artwork. I think it was his uncanny ability to “see” what most of us could not. His compositions and concepts were so fresh and unexpected. For several years a postcard size image of Coyote in Winter Sage was taped above my desk.”
“I could never have imagined having an exhibit at the Bateman Gallery,” Mangelsen noted. “I am honoured and grateful to have been so inspired by Robert Batemen’s work and environmental advocacy. Most of all, I’m proud to call him my friend.”
The Bateman Gallery at 470 Belleville St. is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., with a later option of 4:30 to 7: p.m. on the third Thursday of the month. Admission is by donation.
The Bateman Gallery Gift Shop features a selection of hardcover books chronicling Mangelsen’s adventures around the world. All proceeds support the Bateman Foundation’s mission to foster enduring connections with the natural world.
Visit batemanfoundation.org for more information.
rick.stiebel@goldstreamgazette.com
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