'Nature LA' Series Offers Vintage Aesthetic

The arts and the environment have a history of being neglected and underappreciated. But, sometimes, just a hazy Poloroid photograph can capture the essence of both.

The G2 Gallery on Abbot Kinney Boulevard prioritizes both imagination and environmental conservation, and they support the causes
 by fusing them together, as with their ongoing fine art 
series "Nature LA." An exhibit of photography by native Californian Chloe Aftel is on display now.

Aftel works mostly in Polaroids, which she says are great at enhancing landscapes. She also works with 35mm and 120mm film. "Moon," on display at The G2 Gallery, is a mesmerizing sample of her 35mm work. 
A small white moon, surrounded by an orange halo, sits high in a dark and cloudy sky.

Aftel has seven other photographs on display in the show. "Essrog's Passing Fancy," shot in Marin, is perhaps the most alluring. The image is split 
horizontally: The top half depicts an overcast sky; the bottom, spiny trees and
 brown landscape. This world is desolate, seemingly without civilization.

The perspective in "Yellow Flowers" (Oakland) places the audience at eye-level with
a cluster of small flowers, perhaps daffodils, growing on a hill overlooking the
 ocean. The sea leads to a mountainous island smothered by low, puffy, white clouds,
 topped by a blue sky.

"Rain Clouds," taken in Thousand Oaks is another stirring piece. Water droplets create a sense of being trapped inside
 glass. We can only see the tops of trees and power lines. She is holding us hostage, 
limiting our vision. Unsurprisingly, Aftel shot this photograph from inside her car.

 She describes her process for capturing scenes of nature as "all over the boards."

Certain shots are very planned out, while others are more spontaneous. Her main goals
 when shooting are to capture "some sort of emotional quality" and to record images that 
have a "genuine motivation," and don't feel forced. Aftel wants her audience to realize that while each piece has a separate feeling, they are
 part of a narrative.

Named one of PDN Magazine's "30 under 30" in 2009, Aftel 
continues to capture emotional photopraphs and wow her audience.

"It reminds me
 of the kind of photography that's very in the moment," said Gia LaRussa, marketing director for the gallery.  She describes Aftel's style as "instantaneous," "nostalgic" and "vintage."

Aftel's collection is a great reminder of nature's charm and of the
 impressive imagination of photographers. Her aesthetic, with its a slightly washed-out palette, adds a dimension to the overall "Nature LA" series.

Not only is most of the photography in the gallery inspired by the environment, but all proceeds from the gallery's art sales 
are donated to environmental groups. Since it opened in March 2008, the gallery has donated more than $123,000.

Aftel's work is available for $850 at the gallery, which expects to sell out at the exhibit's closing reception on Friday,
 Dec. 3, from 6 - 9 p.m.