Article originally published at unity.edu

These accolades include: featured artist in 365 Artists /c 365 Days™; listed artist in the network of photographers in the LensCulture Art Photo Index; participating artist in the 2014 Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory (MDIBL) Art Meets Science exhibition; interviewed in the online magazine Lomography; and awarded a grant from the John Anson Kittredge Education Fund.

365 / Artists 365 Days™ was launched earlier this year as a collaborative project by two Wisconsin-based art galleries, and showcases artists who work in a variety of media. According to the organization’s website, the aim of the project is to “daily share a diverse selection of contemporary visual artists working today from across the country and perhaps the world.”

The LensCulture Art Photo Index is an invitational opportunity for artists to showcase portfolios of their projects and/or work. Affiliation with LensCulture magazine is greatly sought-after by photographers, given its highly respected reputation in the professional artistic community. LensCulture is often referred to as the “definitive resource for latest trends and debates in contemporary photography”.

The Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory (MDIBL) Art Meets Science Exhibition was recently started as an experiment on the notion that science and art share similarities, and in the short time since becoming established, Art Meets Science has become so successful that the program has expanded. The exhibit brings people to the MDIBL to see art, however they end up leaving with an increased knowledge of science. Witman’s images in the show are from a project where she used common slugs on photographic paper to create images resembling the nighttime sky, and that deal with the concepts of time, connections, and biology—Dr. Alan Lightman (author of Einstein’s Dreams) wrote an introduction to this body of work. The public opening reception for the 2014 Art Meets Science Exhibition is Thursday, July 10 from 5:00 to 7:00 pm at the Morris and Davis Research Building. The exhibit will run through September.

Lomography is a global organization and cultural institution, and serves as a hub for aficionados of the Russian Lomo Kompakt Automat, a type of camera that kick started a worldwide photographic movement. Lomography is dedicated to celebrating the experimental and creative visual expression of artists who work in the unique analog photographic environment.

The John Anson Kittredge Education Fund awards grants to individuals engaged in projects that will contribute to the development of their creative and scholarly potential. The Fund receives hundreds of applications each year, and awards are typically given to gifted individuals who are in the early stages of promising professional careers in the arts, humane letters, and the social sciences.

“I am extremely honored and that my work has made an impression on institutions and organizations which I hold in such high esteem,” said Witman. “As an artist, it is very gratifying and humbling to know that my work resonates across an array of constituencies, and that it is in alignment with the mission and goals of these diverse organizations.”

Artist/educator Deanna Witman holds a B.S. degree in Environmental Biology from Kutztown University and an M.F.A. in Photography from Maine Media College. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, and is held in private collections.