How fitting my 100th post gets to commemorate my first professional PHOTO SHOW!!
It was held on October 22, 2022 at The Historic Arapahoe Ranch. That place is GORGEOUS! I was in love with the mansion- just in love. I will be taking pictures of it at a future date.
I had three photos selected by the State of Wyoming to keep in their archives as part of a community awareness photo documentary project. :) I am feeling pretty proud of my photos that were chosen. They are doing a little tour around the Big Horn Basin before they head down to the capital and then I am not sure if they are going to be displayed before they get put in the archives or what. Either way it is a pretty neat honor to say I now have a piece of my photography in Wyoming history!
Here is my photo write up:
"Welcome to Thermopolis" the stoic banner hangs from the light posts up and down the historic downtown, beckoning visitors to visit. Beautiful, old architecture stands as echoes of a grand tradition of merchants is now reduced to a small handful of shops, a restaurant, a bookstore.....mostly "For Sale" signs. The evidence of past ventures is seen by the left over signage also beckoning 'welcome' or 'enter' with the current merchandise of dust and empty glass. Others warn 'No Trespassing' and yet we are still drawn to know more of what happened here. Thermopolis suffers from what most small communities in Wyoming are suffering from- lack of commerce. The economic downturn from Covid-19, high gas prices and lack of competition leads to local prices being high and selection minimal. This causes the already small amount of shoppers to flock to the portals of online and bigger box stores hundreds of miles away. The Chamber of Commerce does its best to offer incentives for locals to shop her in town by hosting contests and seasonal shopping events. As signs turn from 'For Sale' to 'Sold' hopefully, we can work as a community to keep our commerce growing.
