Our September Artist, Don Polunci, is a native of Glens Falls and has taught in the art department at Glens Falls High School for 27 years.  He was the moving force behind the ceramics program begun in 1975 and was instrumental in organizing the photography program in 1980.  Although biology was his initial major, Don found art more to his liking and graduated from the State University College at Buffalo as an art educator with an emphasis in ceramics.   He is not only an accomplished ceramicist and photographer but has inspired many Glens Falls students to pursue a career in art.

In past years, Don used much of his personal time to create ceramic bottle forms and to then sell them at craft festivals such as LARAC’s, where he was one of our original exhibitors.  Recently, he returned to ceramics, spending time at Skidmore's Summer Six program, to just enjoy the creative experience.  However, photography is his passion.  It began when his high school students were carving birds, and he wanted pictures for demonstration purposes.   Don photographs locally and has traveled extensively photographing the national landscape and wildlife in areas such as Maine, Alaska, Florida, and Wyoming.  Wildlife photography requires patience and endurance.  Don has hiked ten miles or more with 30 pounds of equipment, has hired guides to fly him into sites otherwise unreachable.  He travels with a window mounted tripod, sets up blinds and has waited as long as eleven hours trying to get that perfect action shot of nesting birds.  Challenges include getting close for detailed pictures and yet protecting the habitat of the species he is photographing.  Flying with photography equipment has also become a major challenge since 9/11; he plans on extra time, for airport security is very interested in searching all of his equipment. 

Don’s work has been exhibited in group and solo shows:  Cool Beans in Queensbury, LARAC, Saratoga County Arts Council, and the Visitors Information Center at Paul Smiths, NY.  He has had an article on photography published and won the 1998 Grand Prize and 2001 Third Prize in the Adirondack Balloon Festival’s annual photography contest.  He will be exhibiting at Cool Beans in September and has two upcoming exhibits in 2003:  Adirondack Mountain Club Headquarters in Lake George and Crandall Library in Glens Falls.

In 2002 Don was awarded an Individual Artist Grant from LARAC’s  ARTS INITIATIVE program to photograph downtown Glens Falls at the present turn-of-the-century.  He has already spent over thirty hours in photographing and editing, with project completion set for December.   Challenges have included lighting, traffic, trees masking the various facades, street renovation, and angle shots.  The final project will be on exhibit at Crandall Library in early 2003, featuring the downtown buildings of Glen Street.

You may see more of Don’s work on the LARAC Web site as Artist of the Month, and you can contact him about his work at nanandon@adelphia.net