LOCALadk Magazine

LOCALadk 57 Thanks for taking the time to work with us, Jody. Before we get into Acorn Whimsey, let's talk about your work with photography. How did you end up getting involved with it? How has photography evolved for you? When I was much younger I was big into birdwatch- ing. All of my trips were based around what new birds could be seen and I would constantly "chase" rare birds. In 2007, I won the Bird of the Year contest through WildBird Magazine. I received my first digital DSLR camera and a very good lens as prizes. I started using this to document the birds I saw, but this quickly morphed into photographing butterflies, waterfalls, and anything new I could find in nature. I am mostly self taught through trial and error and reading infor- mation on the Internet. I have photographed all over the United States with a special emphasis on our National Parks System. I also enjoy photographing unusual and difficult subjects. I will frequently search to see when and where the International Space Station can be seen flying in front of the sun or moon. A few years ago, I drove up to Old Forge for such an event. The ISS would be crossing in front of the moon at 6:17 on a very cold November morning. I left my house at 3:30 am, was set up in the Old Forge school parking lot by 5:45, and captured the space station in front of the moon. Then came the hour and twenty minute drive back home for a full day of work. Some events are so rare and exciting that you have to put in the late or early hours to see them. My favorite park to photograph has become Glacier National Park in Montana. I drove out there for the first time three summers ago and have returned every year, hitting many other parks along the way. Glacier has it all: scenery, dark skies, unforgettable hikes, and wildlife galore. I now want to see the park in every season. Next year, I will be retired and am hoping to spend more weekends up in the Adirondacks. I have already hiked 10 High Peaks and hope to bag a few more if my knees will allow. My goal is to photograph the Milky Way from a few summits as well as sunrises and sun- sets. So you've photographed these beautiful land- scapes, and suddenly, Acorn Whimsy became a pretty central figure in your work. How did Acorn Whimsy come to be? I saw other artists from around the world creating characters using acorns and other natural objects. When I couldn't travel much during Covid, I decided to give it a try. After my first scene, I was hooked. I wanted my acorn art to be a different style than the artists who inspired me. I came up with a unique look and design for my figures. They are completely articu- lated which allows me to pose them easily, depending on the scene. My character's faces have a more human quality, and they imitate human behavior more than other artist's work. Where do you find your acorns? Do you rummage around random fields, or is there some sort of se- cret underground acorn network? I have discovered that there are so many different species of oak trees and they produce acorns of dif- ferent sizes, color, and shape. When I first started my Acorn Whimsy project, I ordered Red Oak acorns off Etsy. Once I became hooked, I started ordering differ- ent acorns from all over the world: Greece, Ukraine, Russia, Lithuania, and several states. I also collect my own acorns from local trees or while traveling. Do you have a particular type of acorn you like to work with? For making the actual acorn characters I prefer the Red Oak. It has the classic acorn shape and color. Their size is also perfect for making the heads and bodies. When making the female characters, I like to use the Coastal Live Oak Acorns from California. They are long and slender and give a more feminine look, in my opin- ion. Those are the two I work with the most, but I am always looking for the unusually shaped acorn to make the head or body of an animal. Running away from wildlife in Rollins Pond. Coastal Live Oak Acorns turn into beautiful dancers!

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