Art & Life with Shaun Terhune

Today we’d like to introduce you to Shaun Terhune.

Shaun, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
Artists are born, but they’re also made. As a kid I remember knowing I was an artist, but didn’t know what kind – and I never applied myself to the pursuit of art in any serious way. I eventually pursued other things, like rocks and mountains and wild landscapes as I grew in my career as a geologist. My professional life took me throughout North America and even into the arctic, flying missions with an aerospace company in Nunavik, Canada and later working everywhere from the American Southwest to the North Slope of Alaska. Carrying a camera as I went, I documented my travels, but the wild landscapes I worked in made me FEEL crazy things.

I think I began to notice very early in those years that simply documenting the things I saw wasn’t enough; I saw that there was a rich, compelling art in capturing scenes that could evoke deep feeling. I became addicted to it – that was the exhilaration of finally knowing what kind of artist I was. I obsessively pushed myself to learn, create, invent. I applied myself to the art of photography. Like the crazy person that I am, I eventually made the leap of exchanging a stable career for this precarious venture with a camera.

Can you give our readers some background on your art?
I think art tells a story, stirs up feeling or compels you to think. I wrestle sometimes with how to make photographs do any of those things. Sometimes a photo of a bear is just a wildlife snapshot – and sometimes, through circumstances often beyond my control, I might capture that bear in a context or moment that conveys more of a story, a larger significance. I have a photo of a yearling bear cub out on a tree limb, mouth open, crying out into the dusk. Every time I see the photo I wonder why he’s crying. I’m always looking for those moments.

And with landscape photography, for me it’s about hunting the rare, fleeting light that can transform an ordinary scene into something enthralling, a picture that truly compels. I guess I’m drawn to wilderness because I’ve spent most of my life in it, but I want others to go, too. In a way, I want to pick up where people like Ansel Adams left off; I want to distill into my photographs something of the spirit of our wild lands, in New England and abroad, to move us towards conserving and protecting what’s left.

What would you recommend to an artist new to the city, or to art, in terms of meeting and connecting with other artists and creatives?
Social media can be a great tool, but I’d encourage my fellow artists to think local. Local as in, community art festivals, shows, things like that. Even in these tiny NH towns where I live, I’m astounded at the talent I meet at such events, or people who are connected to really successful brands, or other artists who have been established much longer than I have. I am constantly surprised by how far-reaching and influential small-town events can be for networking. Same thing for larger communities, only multiplied! Go out of your way to show genuine interest in what other people are creating and watch the magic happen. Things like this have truly helped me go full-time as a photographer and get to where I am today.

What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
Aside from a few inns and stores in VT and NH, and several magazine publications (most recently, the cover of Western White Mountains magazine), my art doesn’t have a public home yet. I’m building a workshop space in Littleton, NH where I’ll be constructing more of my large, hand-hewn fine art frames, feature some of my prints and have a better space to meet with potential buyers who like to see what I’m working on.

Another of my passions is guiding in the White Mountains and teaching photography workshops. I just returned from leading 2 photography expeditions out west for National Geographic, but my heart is here in the Whites! The best way to support my work is to book workshops with me or purchase my art. Keep an eye on my website or Facebook page for upcoming group workshops, or reach out directly for individual trips and instruction.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.shaunterhune.com
• Email: shaunterhune@gmail.com
• Instagram: @shaunterhune
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/shaunterhune

Image Credit:
All photos taken by Shaun Terhune.

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