Donna Callighan seeks to express through the universal language of sight, the global environmental issues at hand, and to honor nature in all of its perfection. Through her work she seeks to explore the theme of Man’s Hand on Nature.  She has even adopted the brand name, donna-terra, to signify her commitment to the natural world. 

She was inspired to create this style of imagery during a walk down a side street in Paris while on a commercial assignment in 2002, where she spotted a back-lit potted palm frond pressing up against a piece of special architectural glass.  Upon her return she procured a piece of this glass, and began to explore personification of nature with flowers and the intrigue of shadows.  Further investigations with this technique have lead to discovering interesting and energetic abstractions and expressiveness by using human elements.

Thanks to the powerful tool Adobe Photoshop, she is able to creatively enhance the color of these digitally captured images to suit the mood of each piece, without the use of pre-set software filters.  The painterly ‘look’ is created by the glass structure.  Thus the images begin to visually cross the border between photography and other fine art techniques.  Then by printing them on large canvas and fine art papers, that line is even more blurred, a fact that has become apparent when viewers ask, “Is this a painting or watercolor?”

Now, after years of searching, Donna has found her own unique style.  She has several exhibition ideas that she passionately wishes to explore.  Series of work include, Foggy Florals, Seeds, Trees and Weeds, S.O.S. a visual / commentary on our continual path towards committing ecocide, and Mirror Montage Earth Balls & Collages.  She is currently working on producing her Leftovers Series in the studio, as in items leftover from which we consume, and Intersections of Man and Nature captured on location as found.

Donna has been a successful professional photographer for over twenty years.  She is currently reassessing how to contribute to our world in a manner that allows her spirit to rest, and more importantly, contributes to environmental awareness and the betterment of others.


If we start cleaning up this mess today…