Highway 285, New Mexico

Lawrence McFarland has created an influential body of work that is subtle, whimsical, graceful and sublime. His quiet, poetic images explore the experience of specific places. In addition to the physical things he records, McFarland is consistently interested in the qualities of space, light and atmosphere. Typically, he works with a hand-held, medium-format camera. This gives him the ability to work quickly and intuitively and to produce prints with fine detail and subtle tonalities.

Born in Wichita, Kansas, McFarland went on to receive an M.F.A. from the University of Nebraska in 1976 after graduating from the Kansas City Art Institute. After serving as an assistant professor and visiting artist at the Kansas City Art Institute in the fall of 1984, McFarland began teaching at the University of Texas-Austin, where he now holds an endowed position. Early in 2010, he was honored with a John Simon Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship.