Biography

When I was fifteen, I found myself twenty feet up in a tree, barefoot, on a mission to complete an art class assignment. I had my camera in hand. At that moment, I remember the feeling: I was truly at home. Outdoors, adventure and visual expression have always been the place where I belong.

Following that experience, I completed my Bachelor of Fine Arts, with emphases in photography, ceramics and neon glass sculpture. Endeavors since then have routinely included adventure. Twice in my life, I’ve shoved everything I own in a moving truck, and driven it across the country to find a new home. We figured out jobs and housing after arriving – adventure style.

More recent adventures have included climbing mountains, creating, owning and running an outdoor magazine, and teaching art classes, and I’ve just launched a new endeavor to reconnect people through nature. I’ve had the pleasure of immersing myself in cultures, religions and ideologies from far corners of the planet. As the photojournalist for my first Nepal project, I accompanied a group of famous Nepali musicians on a tour along the Everest Highway to the Base Camp of Mt. Everest for an environmental campaign. The project’s goal was to raise awareness of the effects of climate change on the Everest region and its glaciers and people. My more recent Nepal project focused on education in remote rural villages, implementing new infrastructure, instructing teachers for a school of 400 children. I also worked with local leaders to fund classroom additions on over crowded school buildings, and facilitated rubbish clean up in remote villages, where there are no roads or garbage service. I have studied Plains Indians of the Midwest US, post-colonization in Africa, ancient civilizations as well as early explorers of the Americas. I curate a photography group which promotes imagery of real life rather than promoting stereotypes based on front page news.

I have edited manuscripts and managed the publishing process for writers and authors. I teach art and photography with a cultural bent. I lead trips into the mountains. I am at home as a public speaker, giving presentations and workshops, and I also speak to school groups and communities about visual arts, nature, culture, travel, and inspiring people to follow their passion.

This is an interview I did with Actively Northwest Magazine.

Profile photo - Bill Bungard