Elizabeth Opalenik, The Landscape Within #007, A Symphony of Listening #1, 1/15, 2024, Carbon print Mounted on Arches, Printed Awagami Bizan, A2, 19.75 x 27.5 inches

I left home in 1969 to the sound of peace marches and my mother saying, "I knew you were different from the time you were two." From the farm in western Pennsylvania to the shores of Connecticut, I slowly started to evolve as an artist from my former lives managing the accounting department for Continental Oil Company, managing jazz clubs and as "A MS-Placed Lady" in my construction/design company. In 1979, after a two-week photographic workshop in Maine, I sold everything and never looked back.

I am a photographic artist, educator, mordançeuse, and freelance photographer traveling the world with my camera and I love it. Philanthropic projects keep me grounded and connected universally.

I believe that all good photographs are self-portraits and know that my many former lives manifest themselves in my images. My heart remains in my darkroom working in the Mordançage process, but I use today's technology when appropriate to explore all the creative paths. - E.O.