Conservation, photography meet in exhibit

Jill Metcoff is captivated by fire.

The smoke looks like clouds, the flames like wings.

While Metcoff acknowledges the danger of standing a few feet away from the flames, she spent eight years photographing controlled burns across the Midwest.

"The flames resemble as it sort of dances through the picture. It looks wispy. It looks ghost like," she said.

Her evocative photographs of controlled burns in prairies and woodlands will come to Independence Grove in Libertyville starting today.

Hosted by the Liberty Prairie Conservancy and the Lake County Forest Preserve District, the Chicago artist's work will be exhibited through July 20 in the visitor's center.

Based in Grayslake, the Liberty Prairie Conservancy is a non-profit organization that preserves farmland, woods, fields and other open lands throughout Lake County.

As part of their annual meeting, executive director Steve Berg said the Liberty Prairie Conservancy has brought in artists that offer a conservation theme.

Metcoff's work allows people to study an important land management tool through art.

"Her work is artistically beautiful and fascinating," he said. "But it also talks about an aspect of local restoration that people may not be aware of, which is prescribed and controlled burns."

Metcoff has been a photographer for more than 30 years. She uses a large-format camera to create black-and-white panoramic images of natural areas in rural Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin. Metcoff has a particular interest in when wild areas and human influence intersect.

She first became interested in photographing controlled burns when she began to convert open land near her home into a prairie. Taking a black-and-white picture of a controlled burn is a technical challenge, she said. She uses a slow exposure to capture the smoke and flames.

"It does not look like what the eye sees in reality," she said.

Previous solo exhibitions of her work have been displayed throughout the Midwest, including at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

Alongside each piece there will be text that will explain what is happening and offer historical insight into these burns.

Metcoff said in many instances fires are used to renew nature ecosystems covered up by invasive plants.

Her exhibit will officially open at the Liberty Prairie Conservancy's annual meeting today.

The public is welcome to attend the opening and meet Metcoff. Activities begin with a 6:30 p.m. reception.

The meeting also will feature guest speaker George Rabb, former director of the Brookfield Zoo and renowned conservationist.

Admission for the meeting is $10. For more information, call the Liberty Prairie Conservancy at (847) 548-5989 or visit www.libertyprairie.org.

Admission to the photography exhibit at other times is free. Gallery hours vary, so call ahead for availability at (847) 968-3499. Independence Grove is located just off of Route 137, east of Milwaukee Avenue.