Brady Cates
bcates@uwyo.edu
Growing up, Robert Kirkwood always appreciated art. His mother had pictures hanging from the walls in their home and his appreciation towards art has continued to grow and he has transformed that appreciation into creating his own artwork.
Now as a 46-year-old, Kirkwood doesn’t appreciate just everyone else’s artwork, he can appreciate his own. This has been a passion of his ever since he was in junior high school where he was always carrying a camera around.
Kirkwood is a Research Scientist at the geographic information center at the University of Wyoming, but loves doing photography on the side. He works as a web designer creating maps, which can also be artistic in a way.
“I wouldn’t be able to support myself enough if I was just doing photography, Kirkwood said. “But I do sell quite a bit of art every year which is good supplementary income.”
Every month Coal Creek coffee shop has a featured artist of the month and Kirkwood is this month’s featured artist. The coffee shop does this to support the local artist from the community and to give people a chance to show their artwork.
“I’ve always seen artwork hanging from the walls in the shop and have always wondered how I could get my artwork shown on the walls,” Kirkwood said. “Now I get to show it this month which is pretty cool.”
Kirkwood said that it is like having your own art gallery for the month.
“I have been in a couple different shows and people have been pretty responsive to the art. I can’t afford my own gallery so it is nice that this free and it is pretty much like having your own gallery for the month,” Kirkwood said.
From Rock Springs, WY, Kirkwood started taking pictures when he was in Junior High School.
“I started getting into photography and picture taking when I was in Junior High, but back then we had film cameras and there wasn’t that instant gratification of a photo,” Kirkwood said.
Kirkwood said he got serious with photography in 2009 when he was able to afford a digital camera.
He wanted to get into photography because he would always look at other people’s photos and see them in a different way.
“I wanted to take photographs so people could see how I see things,” Kirkwood said.
Kirkwood explained this as sharing his vision.
Kirkwood said that he captures things in nature that people aren’t really able to see with the naked eye and it gives people perspective on different things in nature.
A lot of Kirkwood’s pictures come from landscapes and nature. He likes to go all around Wyoming to shoot photography. Anywhere from Medicine Bow Peak to Yellowstone.
“I went to Yellowstone to shoot some pictures when I was just getting started and it was beautiful,” Kirkwood said. “I would really like to stay up there for a month and take as many pictures as I can get.”
Many photographers who shoot landscapes and nature have a favorite spot to take photos and Kirkwood said that his favorite location to shoot his photo’s is right above the golf course with a ridge that runs between the golf course and Grays Gabel.
“I can see all the way to the Snowies and also see up Happy Jack. That is my go to spot.” Kirkwood said.
Kirkwood’s vision is to have photography be inspirational and help people see things they wouldn’t normally see with their naked eye through his photography.
“I grew up appreciating art and now I am trying to inspire people through my art,” Kirkwood said.
