One of the Nineteen Photographs in VANISH Depicting Our Country’s Rural Heritage. For Sale for $3,700. at Cove Street Arts.

Most of the Photographs Were Taken in Vermont Where Mr. Westphalen Resides; but Others Were Taken in Virginia, South Dakota, Montana and Maine.

The Fishing Shacks, os South Portland, Built in 1718 by Scottish and Irish Settlers.  These Historic Structures Were Swept out to Sea by a High Flood Tide in January of 2024.

“Vanish” a photography exhibit by Jim Westphalen opened on Thursday, August  21 and runs through Saturday, October 11, 2025 at Cove Street Arts, 71 Cove Street on the east end of Portland.

Mr. Westphalen “explores the ‘beauty in decay’ of disappearing iconic structures across America,” according to biographical material provided by Cove Street Arts.  “The buildings that are the very foundation of country’s rural heritage, the ordinary and the extraordinary.  In a race against time and battle against the elements, he travels the country in search of these fading gems, collecting the stories and visually preserving as many as possible before they completely vanish from the American landscape.”  For Mr. Westphalen capturing these structures in photographs is like chasing “ghosts.”

He is inspired by artists such as Andrew Wyeth, Edward Hopper and A. Hale Johnson.  Mr. Westphalen encourages us to see the “unclaimed beauty” before they vanish.from our sight.  As the fishing shacks in South Portland did during a high tide in January of 2024.  This is Mr. Westphalen’s first show at Cove Street Arts, but certainly not his last here.

The prints on display are made on 100% acid free rag papers and then coated with an optically clear varnish for UV protection.  This does away with the need for glass removing the viewing barrier and glare.  Mr. Westphalen uses a vintage 4×5 field camera which gives him unlimited control to shape and focus the elements of each captured scene.  He’s adapted this camera body to state-of-the art digital hardware which renders remarkable detail and sharpness. It’s this marriage of classic hardware and vintage lenses along with the new digital technology that gives his photographs their signarure painterly look.  The images you see here are not manipulated.  They are true photographs according to  biographical material provided by Cove Street Arts.

Cove Street Arts is located at 71 Cove Street.  It is closed on Sunday and Monday.  www.covestreetarts.com and visit info@covestreetsarts.com