Artwork copyright Catherine Holahan. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Unstrung, 1998

Catherine Holahan
American (born 1939, died 2005)

Location: Harbor Ridge Middle School, Gig Harbor

About the Artwork

In the photograph Unstrung artist Catherine Holahan captures the rich textures and colors of an old, ragged baseball. She notes, "I have found many baseballs and every one is in a different stage of decay. I find them interesting and evocative." Holahan's photography explores the beauty in the textures, patterns, and colours of objects enhanced by age.

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with Peninsula School District.

About the Artist

Photographer and painter Catherine Holahan (1939-2005) created compositions that explored the passage of time and the beauty found in transformation. In her own words, "What interests me about the the objects I collect, photograph, and paint, is the effect of the passage of time; the ravages of man, nature, and the elements; the worn and worn out, and the beauty found in this transformation from the useful to the neglected."

Holahan lived in Boston, Massachusetts, and Galiano Island, British Columbia, Canada. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English LIterature from Columbia University in New York City. Twenty-five years later, she studied photography at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts and the New England School of Photography. She focused on photography since 1988 as a photojournalist and art photographer.