Lead applications system analyst also exhibiting artist
By Michele Rainford
SEPT. 28, 2007--Cynthia Leigh-Nussenblatt’s job at UTMB as Lead Applications System Analyst in the Information Services Operations Command Center is a technically demanding one that requires her best analytical skills, but come the weekend Leigh-Nussenblatt’s right brain takes over and she is reinvigorated by her artistic pursuits. You see, Leigh-Nussenblatt is a passionate and dedicated life-long artist whose main medium is photography.
Leigh-Nussenblatt’s artistic endeavors and photographic pursuits cannot simply be described as a hobby. “It’s like having two full-time jobs,” she says. “But I cannot not do art. Projects may sit in my head for long periods of time until I have a chance to work on them. I’ve tried to stop, but I can’t.” Leigh-Nussenblatt says she’s thought of stopping at certain points because she finds her “day job” mentally exhausting, but her artistic drive prevents her from doing so.
Leigh-Nussenblatt is a respected photographer whose photograph, Lake, East Texas is currently featured in the Museum of Fine Arts Houston exhibit, Houston Wilderness: A Collaboration. The exhibit continues through Jan. 6.
The photo exhibit, featuring 50 photographs of the diverse ecosystems in and around Houston, is a joint project between the museum and Houston Wilderness, a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting and promoting the varied natural environs and beauty of southeast Texas.
One might assume that Leigh-Nussenblatt’s technical position, providing stability for Enterprise-related operations for the IS Operations Command Center, and her artistic passion would be in conflict. On the contrary, Leigh-Nussenblatt says, “Initially when I first got into computing, my creative side helped with the technical aspects of my job. It allowed me to see things globally and to conceptualize and this helped tremendously in the switch.”
When Leigh-Nussenblatt is at work, the demands of the job keep her very focused and productive. Away from work, she unwinds by taking long drives when she can, preferably as a passenger, so she can absorb nature and its beauty. For three to four hours she shuts her brain down and stares out the window.
“It’s most productive,” she says. “It puts the creative back in focus.” Leigh-Nussenblatt also likes to ride her bicycle and go fly fishing.
Leigh-Nussenblatt started at UTMB in 1988. She was first hired as a black and white printer in, Biocommunications and spent some time in the former biomedical engineering department (BMEE). For the past nine years she’s been a member of the IS department.
Her life as an artist began when she started taking pictures at 10 years old. Leigh-Nussenblatt earned a BFA with a concentration in photography at Texas Women’s University in Denton. She later earned her MA at Stephen F. Austin University in Nacogdoches.
Leigh-Nussenblatt has worked in all types of mediums in her life-long fascination with art.
“Photography is just another medium of art. Art is a language. It’s my speech; it’s my communication piece, my way to communicate with the world.”
Leigh-Nussenblatt also does artist books. She is very proud of her handmade book that was just a thought in her head for 20 years until two years ago when it started coming together exactly as she had envisioned it. The book Ruins was finished a year ago and she hand-produced a limited edition of 50 copies, of which 20 have been sold. A selection of Leigh-Nussenblatt’s mesmerizing prints from her book is shown on her web site at www.nussenblatt.com.
According to Leigh-Nussenblatt, she’s not a “shooter.” She does not shoot tons of film, in general. Instead, she has pre-conceived visual ideas for photo work in her head.
“Thoughts and imagery start with a vision in my head, at first, and I work towards trying to get it on film,” Leigh-Nussenblatt says. “Sometimes it comes out better, sometimes the same, from the same starting point.”
Leigh-Nussenblatt is currently in talks with the Centro Fotográfico Álvarez Bravo in Oaxaca, Mexico, to show her photographs at the center. If all goes as planned, this exhibit in 2008 will be her first international exhibit.
Few people at UTMB know of Leigh-Nussenblatt’s artistic accomplishments. She is far from the typical information technology employee.
Working at UTMB and doing photography in her spare time suits Leigh-Nussenblatt just fine, now. “In 10 years from now, when I retire, I will be totally focused on my art work. Until then, I will try to do my photography when I can.”