WYMAN MEINZER: ART AND ARTISTRY ON THE HIGH PLAINS
Wyman Meinzer captures the essence of the
natural Texas landscape like no one else can. Raised on a ranch near
Benjamin, Meinzer has nurtured a childhood fascination for the creatures by devoting his life to
understanding
them through the lens of a camera. During three winters spent in a
rustic ranch cabin without electricity and
running water, Meinzer honed his
considerable photography skills while
chasing coyotes. By the late 1970s, he
had won a National Wildlife Federation photo
contest, and gained a reputation for his
uncanny
ability to capture
subjects using only natural light.
From the coyotes
which first caught his eye and imagination, to roadrunners and quail, to the playa lakes
which dot
the
High Plains, to
the endless variety of Texas sky, Meinzer’s work has appeared on over 220 magazine
covers,
more than
50 coming from national and
international publications including Smithsonian, Natural History, Time,
Newsweek, U. S.
News and World Report, Audubon, Texas
Highways, Outdoor Life, BBC Wildlife, and National
Geographic, among
others. In 1985,
Sports Afield named Meinzer one of the top
five outdoor photographers in
America. In
addition to many
honors received as a Texas Tech alumnus, Meinzer has authored and
contributed
photographs to several books for which
he received national recognition. In 1997 he was named State
Photographer of
Texas by Governor George W. Bush and
the Seventy Fifth Legislature of Texas.
Although Meinzer
has traipsed across much of Montana, Alaska, Mexico, Canada, and the entire state of
Texas, he
prefers
the light
and expansive vistas of the Llano Estacado. According
to Meinzer, “shooting on the plains makes
you feel like the
rest of the world
isn’t big enough.” |
