• By Rob Norwood
• Posted Friday, May 24, 2019

Photography exhibit by Christine Rucker, on exhibit until July 31 at the Central Library.

Dance for the River is a traveling multimedia exhibit that connects audiences with the Yadkin River, the region’s primary water source, through dance, photography, and storytelling.

Christine Rucker, whose studio overlooks the east bend in the river, spent a year photographing dancers as they improvised to the river’s varied landscape. Working in collaboration with the Yadkin Riverkeeper, journalist Phoebe Zerwick, the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, and Helen Simoneau Danse, they traveled to some of the most pristine stretches of water and some of the most environmentally sensitive sites throughout the watershed. The resulting series of images created a call on us to understand the river in new ways.

The project was made possible with support from the Yadkin Cultural Arts Center, Wake Forest University Humanities Institute, Wells Fargo, the Yadkin Riverkeeper, John W. & Anna Hanes Foundation, Ralph Womble, John Willingham and the Yadkin Arts Council.

About the artist: Christine Rucker
The things I value most are woven into my photographs. The environment, access to wild spaces, freedom, adventure, social equity. If these are things that you also value, I hope you see them in my work. I deeply believe that if you are passionate about what you love, you find a way to make that your work.

I have spent the majority of my career as a visual storyteller working with newspapers and nonprofits. I have recently found inspiration in different ways to tell a story of the natural world and how we are all connected to it. When I’m not behind the lens, I’m roaming mountains on my bike, or navigating rivers and streams with my dogs. Protecting these resources has led me to telling stories about why they are important to us. I have always felt the need to explore. Whether it’s a new landscape, a different culture, or social issue, or just as simple as a community tent revival or family event. I love my work and the people who let me share part of their lives.

I have been making photographs for over 25 years. I learned the craft of storytelling while working as a newspaper photographer right out of college. I learned the fragility of life while volunteering for Operation Smile and other nonprofit missions in Third World countries. My camera has taken me places I would never have gone, and I’ve been fortunate to meet some amazing people along the way.

My current clients include: WS Foundation, Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation, The Duke Endowment, WFU, UNCSA, Our State Magazine, Bike Magazine, Britax Child Safety Inc., Kenan Institute, and HanesBrands.