by Bella Erakko
The DC-3s abandoned for years, grass growing up around their flat rotting tires, and Andrea Linderman wanted to photograph them. With some Internet sleuthing, she traced them to an airport near Rolla, Missouri, and called to speak to the airport manager. Although baffled by her interest in wrecked planes in the weeds when there was a beautifully restored one near the terminal, the manager agreed to let her photograph them. “But you can’t cross the live runway.” So, accompanied by an escort, Andrea got her photo shoot. Propeller noses aimed regally heavenward, their sleek lines descending into weedy decay, the cracked windshields, the story that one had been flown on D-Day, the tornado damage—all became part of Andrea’s photographic eye. They looked ready to rise from their rust and fly into the sunset. “They’re gone now,” Andrea says. “Word is one will be restored, and the other two used for parts. The manager said I was the last one to photograph them.” Andrea’s connection to bygone times along with her attraction to nature define her photographs. Whether it’s a lace curtain billowing out of an abandoned farmhouse where daffodils still bloom, or light flooding through dogwood blossoms; an almost candle-glow image of downtown Hannibal or a color-saturated autumn tree, her images evoke a heart-felt connection to our Midwest life. She uses basic tools to enhance her images, and is currently exploring an encaustic (wax) technique to add texture and depth to a photographic image.
“But overall,” Andrea admits, “my favorite thing is nature. I like small things: snail shells, acorns, pine cones.” She laughs, “I even bring bite-sized treats for our Second Saturdays.”
An opening reception will be held Saturday, October 13, from 5:00 until 8:00 pm. A piece of Andrea’s work will be given away in a free drawing held at 6:00. This reception coincides with Hannibal’s Second Saturday Gallery Night.
