LaVerne Black Photography.

Visual Expressions

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ex001 ~ Back To The Barn [ 9" x 13" ]
It was a warm autumn day in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. This horse was not interested in visiting with us; instead he was intent on going back to the barn where a can of grain may have been waiting for him.

ex002 ~ Frost Valley Sheep [ 9" x 13" ]
Sheep are wonderful to photograph. They are inquisitive but wary. When approached they will run away in a group until you stop, then they turn, stop and watch, waiting to see what you do next. This cat and mouse game can go on as long as you are willing to participate.

ex003 ~ In The Throes Of Winter [ 9" x 13" ]
Snow had been coming down heavily all day. We were the first travelers on a lonely country road in many hours. Seemingly obliviously to the snow, these massive fellows just watched us without expression.

ex004 ~ Leaning Silos [ 13" x 8.5" ]
How long can man's construction withstand the inevitable? This photo taken in Sullivan County was exhibited in Manhattan near a window looking out over a totally different landscape of cold straight towers of brick and steel.

ex005 ~ Gazing Cows [ 9" x 13" ]
Watching the watcher.

ex006 ~ Hay Rake [ 13" x 9" ]
One winter here in the Catskills I feverishly braved many snow storms in search of subjects befitting these soft velvety atmospheric conditions.

ex007 ~ Decorated Door [ 8" x 6.5" ]
Doors that are not entered for any length of time take on nature's decorations, adding to their charm and intrigue. Nature never rests.

ex008 ~ Sap Buckets [ 9" x 10.5" ]
Today, most producers of maple syrup have converted to pipe lines going from tree to tree and then to the sap house. Galvanized metal buckets like these are a rare find.

ex009 ~ Sassy [ 6" x 4" ]
Sassy is not fenced in, she wanders around the Olson farm in Cushing, Maine. The Olson farm drew Andrew Wyeth back many times to immortalize it forever with his drawings and paintings.

ex010 ~ Mike, The Border Collie [ 4" x 6" ]
Mike keeps watch over the flock of sheep at Apple Pond Farm.

ex011 ~ Jersey Cow [ 4" x 6" ]
After my father sold the milking herd, we kept a sweet doe eyed jersey cow for the rich sweet milk she gave us.

ex012 ~ Tennessee Clapboard [ 4" x 6" ]
Abandoned for many years, what memories does this old house hold; births, weddings, festive family holidays, deaths?

Photographic Scenes

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sc001 ~ The Hay Barn [ 9" x 13" ]
In the spring of 2002 I photographed this ancient basswood tree and barn. The barn sits in the middle of a hay field and was used for storing hay and farm machinery. A strong-tornado like wind tore through the field in late August of the same year, taking with it the top section of the barn and a large portion of the basswood tree.

sc002 ~ Hay Rake In Snow [ 9" x 13" ]
The Hay Rake has become a handsome relic, no longer used, set upon a large rock for all who pass to view and remember.

sc003 ~ Sap House In Winter [ 9" x 13" ]
A good amount of "sap snow" was falling the day this photograph was taken. Inside, a blazing fire fueled the boiling sap.

sc004 ~ Rocky Hill [ 9" x 13" ]
Ralph and Doris Hornbeck were the last family to farm this rocky hillside. They were true homesteaders, living off the land in every respect. They raised cows, pigs, sheep and chickens. Workhorses were used to till the soil. They grew their own vegetables and foraged for a wide variety of wild plants and herbs to eat and treat illnesses.

sc005 ~ The Sap House [ 13" x 9" ]
Our family had a small sap house surrounded by sugar maples in the "back pasture". As a child of six or seven I can recall those precious early spring days, walking to the sap house, getting my rubber boots stuck in the mud, the intoxicating smell of wood smoke and boiling sap and best of all the sweet smoky taste of the syrup.

sc006 ~ Delaware County Barn [ 12.5" x 9" ]
Corn, knee high by the Fourth of July.

sc007 ~ Cloistered Hay Rake [ 4" x 6" ]
An overgrown hay field envelopes this retired hay rake.

sc008 ~ Gone Wild [ 7" x 9" ]
This is the barn behind "Claryville Clapboard".

sc009 ~ Pastoral [ 7" x 9" ]
The old barn framed by a graceful apple tree and wildflowers calls out - "Rest here".

sc010 ~ In The Barn Yard [ 11" x 8.5" ]
The fence is nearly gone but there are signs that this little area was once used to hold the cows until they were let into the larger pasture.

sc011 ~ Lee's Underwear [ 9" x 13" ]
Traveling back roads is always an adventure!

sc012 ~ Queen Anne's Lace [ 9" x 6.5" ]
This old truck, surrounded by wildflowers, is on the book cover "Reclamation" by Marcia Nehemiah.
website: www.marcianehemiah.com

Timeless Structures

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ts001 ~ Barn With Leaning Silo [ 9" x 13" ]
I recently worked with a local historian photographing many of the farms in the Town of Neversink. They were operating during the construction of the nearby Neversink and Rondout Reservoirs. These often abandoned, lopsided, tilted barns and adjacent out buildings provide a unique backdrop for the New York City water supply.

ts002 ~ Sculptured Wood [ 12" x 8.5" ]
Silos come in many intriguing designs. This one is wrapped in thin horizontal bands of wood. The cap sits on top like a pert hat.

ts003 ~ Vermont Silo [ 12.5" x 8.5" ]
It was a crisp fall day in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. As I approached to find a good angle a tractor was whirring in the background and a dog barked half-heartedly.

ts004 ~ Tilted Hay Barn [ 13" x 9" ]
A study in architectural detail.

ts005 ~ Missing Boards [ 8.5" x 6" ]
The forces of nature chip away a few boards at a time.

ts006 ~ The Grange [ 4' x 6" ]
The Grange is on the Creek Road in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. The building is an 1850' church, now converted into a workshop housing custom rustic home and garden accessories. I have been visiting Northern Vermont for more than thirty years. It is a very special place where history stands still in many aspects of its architecture and landscape and the vision of its people.

ts011 ~ The Chamber Pot [ 13" x 9" ]
I probably used this chamber pot. The "back pantry" was accessible through this door, which leads to the living room of the house where I was born and grew up in. The house still stands, unoccupied but full of living memories.

ts007 ~ Twin Silos [ 13" x 8.5" ]
When I took this photograph, I was purchasing goat’s milk soap from a couple who raised goats and produced an array of soaps and cheeses from the milk.

ts008 ~ Claryville Clapboard [ 4" x 6" ]
The Claryville clapboard was built in 1850 by Captain Daniel Gillette, who fought in the Civil War. Captain Gillette owned some 300 acres of prime woodland along the Neversink River. The clapboard is just upstream from the site of an 1860’s tannery whose stonework chimney is still visible.

ts009 ~ Mitteer Farm [ 9" x 13" ]
This cluster of silos stand like sentinels in the wind.

ts010 ~ Callicoon Barn [ 4"x 6" ]
This stately old barn has little time left before it collapses.

ts012 ~ Additions [ 9"x 13" ]
As the number of livestock increased on a farm it became necessary to put up more buildings and add on to the existing barn. This photograph shows several of the additions.

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