Chabot Spectator

Issue date: 3/1/07 Section: In Focus

Media Credit: Courtesy of Greg Macgregor One of MacGregor's inspired photographs depicts a replica of a keel boat located in Onawa, Iowa.

More 200 years ago, there were two men with a passion to explore and to discover all they could.

Their names were Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. They began a journey that would one day inspire one of Hayward's very own professors to retrace their trails and expand on what their exploration has led to today. On March 3, there will be an exhibition opening at the Hayward Historical Society displaying 60 black and white photographs by the enlightened Greg MacGregor.

According to information provided by the Historical Society, "MacGregor traces the historic 19th century journey west to see the route as it exists today. Using the Lewis and Clark journals as his guide, MacGregor follows the original path as much as possible and captures vivid images along the way."

So what is so inspiring about this artist's work? Carrie Santell, administration assistant of the historical society and the museum store manager, said in a phone interview, "MacGregor offers a clear pictorial [journey] of how the nation has changed, and how the American frontier was revolutionized."

For the museum-goers, if you are wondering what you can expect, Santell offers her opinion. She said, "A mental image, along with the text from Lewis and Clark diaries, will provide you with an internal response of they [Lewis and Clark] saw, and seeing the past in the present."

The exhibition is entitled "Lewis and Clark Revisited" and according to the press release, "it speaks to the legacy of those early explorers who opened up the west to a young nation's imagination and settlement and, at the same time, provides a rich visual commentary on contemporary American life."

For anyone interested in visiting the Historical Society to see this view of contemporary history, the exhibit will be on display until June 2. For more details you can reach the Society at (510) 581-0223. Or visit the Hayward Area Historical Society 22701 Main St., Hayward.

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools