An artist's work rarely changes in a single moment.
It evolves gradually through experiences, questions, experiments, successes, and sometimes unexpected discoveries.
Over the past several years, my fine art nature photography has been undergoing such an evolution.
The landscape remains central to my work.
What has changed is how I see it.
Luminous Fractals of Looe Key
From above Looe Key, coral formations, changing depths, and luminous water transform into an intricate natural composition. This perspective became an important step in the evolution of my Aerial Abstract Realism—photography grounded entirely in the natural world, yet often appearing almost painted.
Beginning at Eye Level
Much of my earlier work was created from the perspective most of us naturally experience: standing within the landscape.
Mountains rise above us.
Water stretches toward the horizon.
Wildlife occupies the same physical environment we do.
This perspective creates intimacy.
The photographer is physically present within the ecosystem.
I remain deeply connected to this kind of photography.
But aerial work introduced a completely different visual language.
Looking Down
From above, the horizon disappears.
Without it, our usual sense of orientation begins to change.
Water becomes shape.
Coastlines become lines.
Reefs become networks.
Kelp becomes texture.
Ice becomes geometry.
The photograph can initially appear abstract even though nothing within it has been invented.
This is the foundation of what I call Aerial Abstract Realism.
Currents Among the Kelp Mosaic
Along the San Diego coastline, the visual language changes. Kelp, currents, waves, and shifting water create organic patterns that blur the boundary between photography and abstraction. Currents Among the Kelp Veil represents the continuing evolution of Doreen McGunagle’s Aerial Abstract Realism.
The Natural World as Artist
One of the things I find most compelling about aerial photography is how little nature needs our help to create extraordinary compositions.
The patterns already exist.
The photographer's task is to recognize them.
During my Florida Keys aerial project, coral formations appeared beneath clear water like elaborate organic drawings.
Over San Diego, kelp forests, currents, breaking waves, and shoreline formations created completely different patterns.
In Greenland, enormous fields of ice revealed another visual vocabulary of fracture, shape, texture, and scale.
Three ecosystems.
Three forms of abstraction.
All created by natural processes.
Sharing the Evolution
On Saturday, November 14, from 2:00–4:00 p.m., I will share this evolution during From Water to Aerial Realism: An Afternoon with Doreen McGunagle, Ph.D. at Artists' Studios & Gallery of Tequesta.
The afternoon will provide an opportunity to see new aerial work and explore the stories behind the photographs.
Doors will open at 2:00 p.m. for informal viewing, followed by a brief welcome and artist talk at 2:30 p.m. The remainder of the afternoon will provide time for conversation and viewing the artwork.
For me, these conversations are an important extension of the work.
A photograph can begin the story, but questions often take it further.
Where was this created?
How high were you?
Is that really the color of the water?
What am I looking at?
Those questions are exactly what I hope the images inspire.
Looking Ahead
This new aerial work will continue into 2027 as part of Edges of the Earth: Fragile Ecosystems from Reef to Glacier, my solo exhibition opening April 2 at the Cornell Art Museum in Delray Beach.
The exhibition will bring together the coral reefs of Looe Key, San Diego's Pacific coastal environment, and Greenland's Ilulissat Icefjord.
Together, they represent the direction in which my work is moving: fine art photography that combines beauty, abstraction, environmental research, and conservation storytelling.
Art, Nature, and Purpose
My goal has never been simply to photograph beautiful places.
I want the work to encourage a second look.
And perhaps a third.
I want someone to initially respond to color, texture, scale, or composition and then become curious about the real ecosystem behind the image.
That curiosity creates an opportunity for something more.
A portion of purchases from Doreen McGunagle Fine Art supports Global Voices for Nature Foundation Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to conservation education and increasing awareness of the importance of protecting our natural resources.
My photography and the Foundation share a common purpose: connecting people more deeply with the natural world.
From water to aerial realism, the perspective may be changing.
The purpose remains the same.