Bozeman Magazine

Opening reception for a solo exhibition of new work by photographer Jim Westphalen. "A barn, a playground, an abandoned homestead. Whispers of the past drifting over a vast landscape. Memories imprinted. If one slows down long enough, you can feel the energy left behind by those hundreds of happy children who slid down the slide, the dedicated farmer who climbed upon that tractor through countless plantings and harvests or the loving family who wrestled a living from the land, returning to their humble prairie home after an honest day’s work. At a glance, we might perceive these simple icons as mundane or ordinary, but it’s only when we pause, look and listen, that we can appreciate the uncelebrated beauty that is so much a part of the character of the land we love. In our fast paced world of technology and sensory overload, many of us walk around with blinders on, numbed from what is on our screens or continuously pushed in front us. The Forgotten Landscape is a collection of images intended to return us to the analog world, if only for a moment. Yes, it’s a story of both past and present, but maybe even more so, a challenge to feel the indelible imprint of those who went before us."