Judy Cummings
Among the goals on Judy Cummings’ bucket list, following her retirement in 2003 from educating special needs students, was to study photography. Over the last two decades, she has dedicated countless hours to capturing “moments in time” that inspire her.
These include an unusual pattern or texture, special lighting or shadows, a certain mood, essence or nuance of a moment. She enjoys uses her intuitive eye to capture spontaneity, drawing upon the sensitivity that was critical in her lifelong career as a special needs teacher and learning styles specialist, and also as a horse trainer at Mistover Farm, her home of 47 years in West Deerfield.
“My work training and caring for horses on my farm over the years has helped develop a deeper level of awareness, enabling me to provide what it is that these intelligent and sensitive creatures need. This allows me to create an environment in which each of the horses is comfortable with the ways I interact with them, and they each trust me to understand their individuality. This experience has been a foundation for my photography,” she said.
“Perhaps nothing is more acutely satisfying than being in the moment when the external world reveals itself most exquisitely, and acting on that recognition brings the image to life through my photography. This is the essence of my work,” said Cummings.
Cummings has had numerous solo exhibitions throughout Franklin and Hampshire counties, including at the Hosmer Gallery in Northampton, Deerfield Gallery in South Deerfield, McKuskers Market in Shelburne, Great Falls Discovery Center in Turners Falls, and Geissler Gallery at Stoneleigh Burnham School for Girls, Greenfields Market, Bay State Medical Center, and BaseCamp Photo in Greenfield.
She has also been in group shows at Robert Floyd Gallery in Southampton, Valley Photo Center in Springfield, Vermont Center for Photography in Brattleboro, VT, US Fish and Wildlife Service in Hadley, and ArtSpace and Bay State Medical Center in Greenfield.
A highlight among the awards Cummings has received was in August, 2013, having an image chosen for publication in Outdoor Photographer Magazine’s Black and White Photography Contest. She has also won “Best in Show” four times at the Franklin County Fair’s annual photography contest; first place in a contest sponsored by The Recorder in Greenfield; and first place twice in the “Women in History Month” contest sponsored by the Robert Floyd Photography Gallery in Southampton.