Mildred Alpern, whose vivid photos of nature and West End Avenue’s Christmas trees have graced West Side Rag in the past, has a new show up at the St. Agnes Library on Amsterdam between 81st and 82nd Streets.
The library has an explanation of the show and its exhibition program:
This month St. Agnes Library is featuring a photography exhibition by Upper West resident Mildred Alpern. The theme of the photography exhibition is Winter Gardens and Seedheads, one arc of the ongoing bud-flower-seed cycle. Each month we at St. Agnes feature a different visual artist to display at our library. It is very popular with our patrons, especially when we display a new artist.
Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Mildred is a a graduate of Girls’ Latin School, Boston University, and Columbia University Teachers College. She first arrived in New York in 1953 and has lived in the Upper West Side since 1996. A former teacher of modern European History, she has also worked as a consultant for the College Board’s Advanced Placement Program, publishing articles and student guides.
Photography themes include natural and urban landscapes, primarily in New York City and upstate New York. A regular contributor to online blog Mirrorless Photo Tips, her photos have been selected for juried exhibitions at Photoplace Gallery and Dark Room Gallery in Vermont and the 1650 Gallery in California, as well as for the New York Times Metropolitan Diary. She has self-published several photo books.
All photos are macro images, aluminum metal prints, vivid in color, and all were taken during the winter months at the Riverside Park Community Garden at Riverside Drive and 91st St. They line the staircase between the first and second floors and remind us of inevitable seasonal change and the beauty of a plant when it is “over.” The selection pays homage to Piet Oudolf, the Danish landscape designer of the West Side’s High Line elevated park. He recognized the ways in which winter gardens add different forms, colors, and textures to the surroundings.Mildred’s exhibit will be featured till the end of July. Stop by St. Agnes and see it for yourself!
