Bob deJonge is a native Michigander who has been working as a designer and artist for over forty years. He has embraced the world of digital imaging to create art that pushes the boundaries of what is typically considered photography. His work has gained recognition and resulted in the 2016 publishing of the book “The Best of Sleeping Bear” that features the landscapes of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. In 2022, Bob published his second collection of photographs “Awake at Sleeping Bear” In the last ten years he has been awarded five artist-in-residence positions at national parks and often provides workshops on creativity and digital imaging. Bob looks for opportunities to collaborate with other artists — especially in disciplines other than his own — a firm believer that when artists challenge and support each other — exciting things happen.
Paul Erhard and Bob share a belief in the importance of beauty, a mutual appreciation that makes their collaborations flow very easily. Bob writes “My goal as an artist is to make art that’s part of a conversation. My favorite question is “How can beauty change the world?” And my second question is “What does it mean to be in community?” a community where we become more cognizant of beauty and seek to sustain beauty. A community where we treat each other as beautiful.”
“DRAGON SKIN HILL”
Paul’s collaboration with Bob began during the first weeks of Time Art Space Art in November 2019 with Paul’s musical interpretation of the photo “Dragon Skin Hill” from Bob book “The Best of Sleeping Bear.” Bob recorded Paul’s impromptu performance. Bob writes: “I was excited to be contacted by Paul who had discovered my book at the Crooked Tree Art Center in Traverse City, Michigan. After several emails and a couple phone calls we agreed to spend a day together, touring Northwest Lower Michigan — especially the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The shared love of the lakes, dunes, forests, wetlands, and old homesteads helped form a bond that resulted in an evening collaboration back at the Erhard summer residence. Paul opened my book to an image that he found exciting and proceeded to weave a magical piece of music that filled my soul.”
Video of “IMPROVISATIONS ON AN ORCHARD” 2023
Paul and Bob continued the process of sharing Paul’s musical renditions of more of Robert’s photographs. In September 2022, Paul and Bob deJonge met in an apple orchard near Arcadia in Northern Michigan with Paul musically reflecting on the apples and apple trees while Bob photographed. Bob put together photographs to go along with Paul’s recorded improvisation to create the video “Improvisations on an Orchard.” The music in the current video Paul is Paul’s May 2023 re-exploration of Bob’s apple orchard photos to better reflect the spirit of each of Bob’s photos.
“CATHEDRAL AT METZ” exploration improvisation 2020
Bob’s photo Cathedral at Metz is mesmerizing in its complexity and the power it has to move the viewer’s eye around the scene. The photo also has deep personal significance to Bob because his father had seen this cathedral during his time as a US soldier in World War II. In this video which Paul recorded for Bob in May 2020, Paul and his double bass journey around the photo, beginning with green vegetation on the forest floor, and gradually moving up the expansive arches. While some of the playing is representational, much of it expresses the viewer’s experience of wonder with the components of the photo, and also the personal meaning that the Cathedral has for Bob.
“CATHEDRAL AT METZ”