“Common Thread: Photographs by Theresa Segal” to Open at CF Appleton Museum of Art

The Appleton Museum of Art, College of Central Florida, will present “Common Thread: Photographs by Theresa Segal” from July 27, 2024-Jan. 5, 2025.

Opening in the museum’s Balcony Gallery for Florida Artists, “Common Thread” is a comprehensive anthology showcasing the work of Segal. This career-spanning collection of photographs delves into a subject she knows well: her native state, Florida. The exhibition features a diverse array of subjects, from the formal gardens of Vizcaya in Miami to the storage spaces of the Lightner Museum in St. Augustine. Whether she is exploring historic buildings and neighborhoods, parks or rural landscapes, Segal’s aesthetic remains both intimate and singular.

Also included are black-and-white gelatin silver prints from a collaborative photography project exploring Baracoa, Cuba. Shot on film using a medium format camera, the photos were exhibited in Havana, then traveled throughout the state of Florida in 2005, and are now part of the Appleton’s permanent collection.

Following photography’s progression from film to digital methods, Segal’s images retain a common vision. Much of her influences come from the Southern Gothic genre and she embraces the tropes with a darkly romantic approach. While her photographs are often symmetrically composed within a clinically square composition, they have a timeless, surreal quality. The act of photographing is of particular significance, which she views as “an occasion for quiet contemplation and opportunity to connect and create – it’s as much an expression as it is a meditation.”

Regular admission fees apply to visit. Admission is free on the first Saturday of each month as part of the Free First Saturday program. Join the artist on the Sept. 7 Free First Saturday for two tours of “Common Thread.” Tours will meet at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. in the Balcony Gallery for Florida Artists. Tours are free; no reservation needed to attend.

About Theresa Segal

Segal was born in St. Augustine, Florida, where she attended Flagler College and later taught photography in the same classroom where she had discovered her love of the medium. She studied photography at the Southeast Center for Photography at Daytona State College and the University of North Florida. The artist has received numerous grants for her work including several Individual Artist Grants from the Community Foundation of Northeast Florida, the Florida Department of State and the National Endowment for the Arts. Her work has been exhibited widely across the state of Florida.

The Appleton Museum, Artspace and Store are open Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., and Sunday, noon-5 p.m. A campus of the College of Central Florida, the Appleton Museum of Art is located at 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala, east of downtown on SR 40 (exit 352 east off I-75 or exit 268 west off I-95). Parking is free. For more information, call 352-291-4455 or visit AppletonMuseum.org.