By Amy Weiss
May 25 2022
In the herbarium of the New York Botanical Garden there are over 30,000 fungal collections made by Howard E. Bigelow and Margaret E. Barr Bigelow, married mycologists, during their 30 year tenure at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.¹ In addition to the specimens themselves, there are also mushroom photographs taken by Howard Bigelow. The mushrooms are the main focus of these photographs, which seem more like portraits than still lifes. While scientific in nature, they also capture the beauty of mushrooms and could hang in any gallery.
Howard's photography is mentioned in the obituary written by his wife and published in Mycologia. Margaret writes:
"Perhaps overriding all, Howard was a perfectionist: whether it was choosing the precise words to express his ideas, obtaining the perfect photograph of a fungus, designing and building a portable dryer for his collecting trips, or placing a post straight and firmly. It did not always make an easy existence, but it was an intersting one."²