Three hundred photographs “Capturing Newtown and Our World” taken by Rhonda and Chane Cullens will be on exhibit at Newtown Municipal Center, 3 Primrose Street, April 3 to May 30.
The public is invited to attend the artists’ opening reception on Sunday, April 8. The reception will run from 2:00 pm until 4:00 pm, and light refreshments will be served.
The photographs on exhibit at the Newtown Municipal Center are a collection of a wide variety of subjects taken both here in Newtown and on journeys R
honda and Chane have taken across the country and around the world.
More than a quarter of the photos might look very familiar to Newtown residents. Included in the exhibit are some iconic photos of Newtown from Castle Hill taken in each of our distinct seasons. One of the featured photographs taken from Castle Hill in autumn is a framed print of the photograph taken by Chane that he, along with a delegation representing Newtown, including then First Selectman Pat Llodra, State Senator Tony Hwang, State Representatives Mitch Bolinsky, J.P. Sredzinski, and Will Duff, Newtown Police Chief James Viadero, Rhonda and their son Chad, presented to Governor Dannel Malloy last April. Other photographs capture Fairfield Hills, Holcombe Hill, the Lower Paugussett State Forest, Newtown Village Cemetery, Sandy Hook Center, Church Hill Road, and some Main Street classics including the Newtown General Store, Ram Pasture, and The Pleasance, to name a few.
Animal lovers will not be disappointed with this exhibit. On display are photographs of a wide variety of animals including primates, lions, tigers, deer, pronghorn, sheep, dogs, cats, squirrels, birds, and butterflies. Horses also have a very prominent place in this exhibit. Horse lovers will want to make sure they see the 30-by-40-inch aluminum photograph taken by Chane of his niece’s Friesian horse, titled “Blowing in the Wind.” Some might recognize it and a selection of other photos from the walls of a local Newtown restaurant as well.
Outside of Connecticut, there are featured photos taken in Grand Teton National Park, Mount Rainier National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Yosemite National Park, and Zion National Park, and other locations in California, Georgia, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Virginia, and Washington D.C.
For the world travelers, some of the other photos were taken in Australia, Canada, England, France, India, Ireland, Italy, Malta, New Zealand, Switzerland, and South Africa.
Rhonda and Chane share a passion for photography and enjoy the adventure of traveling and capturing the world together.
Both are very involved board members of Flagpole Photographers Camera Club based in Newtown where Rhonda serves as the Exhibit Chair and Chane as the club web developer. They have also given photography presentations and workshops for the club as well for various other groups. In addition, Rhonda was recently chosen as a Master Member and a Vice President of the New England Camera Club Council, of which Flagpole Photographers is a member.
The couple has also won many awards for their photographs in various competitions, including having photos selected last year for the Connecticut Association of Photographers 100 TOPS in Connecticut competition.
Rhonda and Chane Cullens