Don Springer - Photographic Artist
"Landscape pictures can offer us, I think, three verities - geography, autobiography, and metaphor. Geography is, if taken alone, sometimes boring, autobiography is frequently trivial, and metaphor can be dubious, But taken together .... the three kinds of information strengthen each other and reinforce what we all work to keep intact - an affection for life."
-Robert Adams
Don Springer grew up in Colorado, where he played some competitive golf, and obtained a degree in economics at Colorado State. After working as an assistant golf pro for a couple of years, he sought an education in art. The original idea, to be an illustrator, was quickly replaced by photography. Especially color.
A move East led to an MFA at Mass Art, and many years of teaching at Salem State University. In those days, film photography was the standard. Working in medium format and 4x5, he experimented with the assembly of panoramas. As digital capture matured, the possibilities of more seamless image assembly emerged. Later, pictures from the sky.
Past experience suggested golf as a photographic subject. He could explore how golf courses inhabit the larger man made landscape, and resulting environmental consequences. Or the unique tastes, fashions, and tools associated with the game. Or how golf mirrors society, with its reputation for exclusivity and elitism. Or how golf becomes an obsession - where players call it a spiritual discipline that leads to a zen-like self awareness....
He now lives and photographs in Central Massachusetts. His most current local work is concerned with the history, present, and potential direction of the landscapes near his home - especially spaces that show the results of human habitation.
Education
1996
Master of Fine Arts, Photography
Massachusetts College of Art and Design
1991-1993
1989-1993
1987
University of Colorado at Denver
Arapahoe Community College
Bachelor of Arts, Economics
Colorado State University
Teaching
1996-2020
2021-2005
1996-2001
1999
Salem State University
Middlesex Community College
Mass Art Continuing Education
Montserrat College of Art
Selected Exhibitions
2019
1996-2019
2009
2009
Attached Agendas, Winfiskey Gallery at Salem State University
Faculty Group Exhibition, Winfiskey Gallery
Juried Summer Exhibition ,Tufts University Art Gallery
Make It Work ,Winfiskey Gallery