Gary Kolb

(b. 1952; resides Carbondale, IL)

Untitled, 1998

Untitled, 1997

Untitled, 1997

My intention is to produce a visual, interpretive document—not simply a history, but a story of the forest. - Gary Kolb

This portfolio from Gary Kolb contains 15 silver gelatin prints from his series The Shawnee, an on-going body of landscapes shot within southern Illinois’ Shawnee National Forest. As controversy over its economic and recreational uses creates an uncertain future for the forest, Kolb records its present condition as he investigates its changing relationship with the people who pass through it.

Kolb was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on July 18, 1952. He holds a BA in history and literature of religions from Northwestern University (1974) and an MFA in photography from Ohio University (1977). He has taught in Southern Illinois University’s department of cinema and photography since 1979. His photographs are in the collections of such institutions as the Library of Congress, Washington, DC; International Center for Photography, New York; Western Heritage Museum, Omaha, Nebraska; and St. Louis Art Museum, Missouri.