Marcy Juran

Artist Statement

My work combines personal narratives with the natural world, exploring themes of myth, memory and legacy, often in relationship to botanical imagery.

When I am out with my camera, I often find myself in a meditative state where I can get lost in the patterns of reeds on the surface of a brook or pond, black-eyed susans and grasses waving by the roadside, or patterns of light streaming through leaves in the deep woodlands. I am intrigued by the intricacy and variety of fern fronds and queen anne’s lace, and the improbable perfection of the center of a flower.

I am especially intrigued by the magic and the mystery of the natural world, the revelation of the unseen becoming seen. Translucency and layers hold great interest for me, and mist and fog are among my most favorite weather conditions. A native of Connecticut, I am steeped in the palette of the New England landscape, from the greens of that first leafing out in the spring to the muted grays and purples of the November forests.

The words of the theologian Abraham Joshua Heschel, “Our goal should be to live life in radical amazement” is a source of inspiration to me. My camera captures an ephemeral moment in time. I see it as a means of bearing witness to the beauty of the natural environment at that unique point, as the mere shift in a current or wind erases the transitory image, leaving a blank slate ready for the next iteration.