Animal photo exhibit makes area premiere at Ryerson Woods

The Chicago-area premiere of “Animals Are Outside Today,” an exhibition of the photography of Colleen Plumb, is set from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday, March 4, Friends of Ryerson Woods officials announced.

In this solo show, Plumb explores the relationships between humans and animals, studying how animals are woven through the fabric of culture.

“I realized that everywhere I looked there were animals,” Plumb said. “I'd be in a restaurant and notice there were fake parrots hanging over the table. So I started to ask myself, do all these representations of animals satisfy some kind of a need in us? Does our surrounding ourselves with animals, even if they're fake, serve a purpose?”

Although “Animals Are Outside Today” has received warm receptions in New York, Miami and Santa Fe, this will be the first time the exhibition will be accessible to audiences near Plumb's native Chicago. Her work has attracted a great deal of recent attention nationwide, especially with the publication of a catalog of her work by Radius Books.

“My own hope is if people see the work, it may create a teeny tiny opening of awareness about the natural world,” Plumb said. “Maybe it will be a little bit of help in this long conversation that has been carried on and will continue to be carried on by many, many artists and others over a long period of time.”

The opening reception on March 4 will be in the historic and intimate Brushwood Gallery. The reception will include light refreshments, a book signing and talk by the artist at 2 p.m. Books will be available for purchase. The event is free and no registration is required.

“Animals Are Outside Today” will remain on view inside Brushwood through April 29. Ryerson Woods is on Riverwoods Road near Deerfield.

To order the book, see the artist's website, www.colleenplumb.com, or the publisher's, www.radiusbooks.org.