Kay McCabe
In A State
The breeze tickles my neck as the sun dances through the forest. Bright leaves cascade down, creating patterns impossible to predict. As the sun sets, an old barn radiates color so rich, I have to stop. And then the season changes.
In winter, long light sneaks fitfully through the windows, surprising me where it lands. Often there is no light at all and the cold sets in. Living in rural Vermont, it’s a given we talk about the weather. You feel it in your bones. You bring it in on your shoes. The darkness is long and the light is a gift.
In this rural life, I feel connected to the land: it is beautiful and lonely, harsh yet nurturing, constant but ever changing. As the world spins faster, disturbing the quiet landscape and its daily rhythm, I worry about the future and feel nostalgic for the past. Seeking the bright spots puts me at ease. These photographs chronicle my love of place and how I cope with living here.
I combine rural scenes with ones that I have staged to represent my emotional response to being here, now. I often use movement, either through the camera or through the physical body. As a dancer, I relate to Doris Humphrey’s statement: “Nothing so clearly reveals the inner man than movement and gesture… the moment you move, you stand revealed.” I hope that I stand revealed.
Artist Bio
Kay McCabe is a photographer living in rural Vermont. A retired dancer and dance educator, she is fascinated by gesture, form and light. Her work focuses on capturing the natural world and its relationship to our emotional states. She is deeply influenced by the somatic and improvisational techniques of modern dance. After studying at Wesleyan University, McCabe immersed herself in the downtown experimental dance scene of New York City where she presented her own work. She also toured internationally with the David Gordon Pick Up Company, Susan Foster and Dancers and others. Eventually, she made her way to Vermont, where she started a vibrant dance program at Kimball Union Academy and chaired its arts department. As a photographer, her current work is a personal examination of rural life and its exterior and interior landscapes. Mentors from Maine Media have helped to sharpen her point a view. Her work has been exhibited at Taylor Gallery in Meriden, NH; PhotoPlace Gallery in Middlebury, VT; and AVA Gallery and Art Center in Lebanon, NH.