Georgetown GLOW for 2021! May 14: The Beginning of Everything

Washington Photo Safari is pleased to announce that it is once again partnering with the Georgetown Business Improvement District to offer nighttime Photo Safaris of unique illuminated works of art known as GLOW Public Art.

Nighttime photography is a great skill to have when travelling, shooting on Manual Mode with tripods, and getting the correct settings for shutter speeds, apertures, ISO, and white balance to render nighttime scenes in their full beauty.

And there is no better way to learn and practice this skill than with illuminated artwork in a city display, led by a professional photographer-instructor like WPS Director **E. David Luria**. This year’s series of displays is particularly spectacular because it extends over 6 months from April through September of 2021 with a total of 8 works of art by 6 DC, 1 New York City and 1 Wisconsin artist.

The spring GLOW series takes place from Friday April 9th through Sunday June 27th with five Works, lit for the evening and also enjoyed by day as sculptures. The summer GLOW program runs from July 2nd to September 26th with three Works in three alleys live for the evenings but also enjoyed by day.

As a result, Washington Photo Safari will offer a total of 8 nighttime safaris in Georgetown during April through September 2021, and 6 daytime safaris that will combine the daytime GLOW sculptures with our regularly scheduled “Georgetown by Land And Sea” safaris that end up with a cruise along the Potomac River!

The displays will be shown at 8 different locations in Georgetown, including the Georgetown Lutheran Church, Georgetown Park Plaza, the Canal Mule Yard, Georgetown Waterfront Park, Washington Harbor, Cherry Hill Lane Alley, Oak Alley, and Sovereign Alley. For more information on the 2021 GLOW program visit http://www.georgetownglowdc.com/.

On this safari (#5), we will meet at Washington Harbor to photograph The Beginning of Everything, by Nara Park. This artwork is inspired by a meteorite that fell from outer space. For the design of the sculpture, the artist is using the Holsinger Meteorite as a reference. It is the biggest recovered fragment of the asteroid, Canyon Diablo, that created Meteor Crater in Arizona about 50,000 years ago. Meteor Crater is the best-preserved impact crater on Earth.

A meteorite is a tangible connection between the cosmos and human society, a reminder that we are part of a much larger universe. It makes us contemplate our existence and our relationship to this world and by extension, the universe. By replicating the meteorite that fell from outer space to Arizona and displaying it in DC in an enlarged scale, the hope is to create a piece that surpasses time, space and dimension, and create an experience of discovering a meteorite for the audience, best captured with long exposures by cameras on tripods..

After photographing this display we will take pictures of the Kennedy Center from the Washington Harbor pier and then walk to photograph the display known as Light Pavilion, This work explores the relationship between the historic and the contemporary. Furthermore, how what has once existed inspires what is created today.

Tripods recommended. Masks and social distancing required. Smartphones users are also welcome. Rain date: May 15.