Blog | Dave Higgins Photography

Both/And

on May 25, 2021

We are led to believe that we live in an Either/Or world. We split life into binary qualities: Black or White, Male or Female, Gay or Straight, Individual or Collective, Rich or Poor, Religious or Secular. Based on our feelings about those qualities, we are labeled: Liberal or Conservative, Capitalist or Socialist, Believer or Infidel, Us or Them, Good or Evil.

Our world is filled with and defined by these dichotomies. But what if this dualism is flawed?

Modern physics has revealed that, at the most basic level, things are innately capable of exhibiting both individual particle and collective wave qualities. Any perceived difference is due only to how an entity is observed. In the quantum world, it’s not a matter of Either/Or; it’s a matter of Both/And.

Some high school students in Joshua, Texas paint artwork on their assigned parking spaces. In one sense, the results are wonderful examples of individual creativity. But they don’t exist by themselves. Other nearby spaces, as well as the place and time in which they were painted, shape our perception of this art.

With these images I am exploring how both the individual parking space art and its context coalesce to create a distinct, holistic reality. Viewing them offers us an opportunity to explore a Both/And approach to seeing our world.

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(Clicking on any image will open a slide show.)

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I was walking across the Joshua High School parking lot a few years ago when I noticed paintings on some of the parking spaces. They were something I’d never seen before; parking spaces as canvases for folk art. Cool! Judging by an Internet search they’re something of a novelty; the only locations I found information for were West Orange High School in Florida and James Bowie High School in Texas. Looking at the Joshua artwork back then, I knew I’d want to photograph them.

*Joshua High School parking lot, from Google Maps satellite view. (Older, as much of the art has changed.)*

In addition to my photography, I have a website called Quantum Age that has been online since 1996. It offers a framework for applying ideas from modern science to today’s world. “Both/And” is the first instance in which my photography has found a direct connection with that website.

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Footprints (& Footwear) Along The Paluxy

on May 8, 2021

The Paluxy River around Dinosaur Valley in Texas offers dinosaur footprints that are millions of years old. I’ve visited the state park in which these footprints can be seen on a couple occasions, most recently in April, 2021. During that recent visit I encountered a mystery: recurring instances of recently abandoned footwear. (All evidence points to their recent vintage – in spite of crackpot claims by some that humans walked with dinosaurs in this area.) Wanting to do my part for science, I photographed this mysterious footwear. Each was photographed as found, untouched or positioned by me. These images document its existence. But the mystery remains: don’t these humans notice they’re missing something when they walk away from the river?

Dinosaur footprints, photographed November, 2014. (Water level was much lower then.)

Human Footprints! (April 2021) Taken along the Paluxy a couple miles away from the state park. They were definitely NOT from the time of dinosaurs.

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Artifacts Of The Pandemic

As I noted in my page “Artifacts,” every one of us participates in creating this world in one way or another. Many of us have an urge to create and to leave our mark in small and uniquely personal ways.

In reaction to the global COVID19 pandemic, many people have been displaying rainbows and other items to spread a message of hope in these difficult times. This is a collection of pandemic-related artifacts that I have come across.

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(Clicking on any image will open a slide show.)

Donut Rainbow

The Spinning Room Yarn Shop_Sep 25 2020_DaveHiggins-2020

Rainbow Rock

Blue Pig With Mask

Rainbow Gate

Rainbow Bike

Spring 2020

Rainbow Siding

Rainbow Window With Betty Boop

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Delmar, NY Vigil For George Floyd And Black Lives Matter

Ever since George Floyd was murdered by Minneapolis police on May 25th, there have been countless protest demonstrations in every US state and around the world. On Monday, June 8th, people joined in one of those protests at the Four Corners intersection in Delmar, a suburb of Albany, NY. These are images from that protest.

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(Clicking on any image will open a slide show.)

Protest at Four Corners

“End White Silence”

“…However, I Stand”

“A Better World Is Possible”

“Black Lives Matter”

“Time’s Up”

“Vote Racism Out”

On One Corner

“End Police Violence”

“Black Lives Matter” x 3

Low Expectations

“Say Their Names”

“Remember Ayiana”

“Black Lives Matter” on Earth

Kneeling during 8:46 minutes of silence.

Kneeling along the avenue

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Artifacts

Every one of us, in one way or another, participates in creating this world. We each have an urge to create and to leave our mark.

Many of us create in small and uniquely personal ways – barn doors painted in a cow pattern; a distinctive high school parking space; or a personal decoration at home or work. Works like these provide artifacts of our creative spirit, giving others a glimpse of who we are while they subtly add to the texture of our world.

I’m drawn to such artifacts. These are images of some I have found. I have another page devoted to artifacts related to the pandemic.

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(Clicking on any image will open a slide show.)