Looking back may hold answers about the future of the photographic image for an ISU art and design professor.

Mary Stieglitz is taking time off this semester to complete research after being named a distinguished arts and humanities scholar.

“Mary is one of the most highly published and traveled faculty members in the College of Design. She truly has an astonishing resume,” said Ingrid Lilligren, associate professor of art and design.

“Mary was clearly a superb and superior candidate.”

Stieglitz will present the results of her research during a lecture, “Photography: Vision, Reflection and Connection” at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in the Sun Room of the Memorial Union.

Her presentation will showcase a history of photography, a look at her photographic work and refer to new works and research she has conducted during her semester leave.

Stieglitz describes her time off as a type of “retrospective survey and analysis — a sort of archeological dig.”

When Stieglitz was an artist-in-residence for the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site in 2002, her studio was flooded. Although hundreds of prints were ruined, many of the negatives were salvaged.

This was a time period she describes as both a challenge and an opportunity. Stieglitz was unable to immediately return to her studio and remove the prints, so they were packed in disarray.

During the spring semester, Stieglitz has been able to use some of her time off to sort through the images and to reflect on 40 years of photographic work.

“Digging through, sorting and reviewing is proving to be a period of reflection and retrospection for me,” Stieglitz said.

Her presentation will be based on historic photography, differing views by landmark photographers and personal explorations.

The impact of 19th- and 20th-century photography and photographic history will also be topics of discussion.

Works by some of the famous founders of photography, such as William Henry Fox Talbot and Louis-Jacques Mande Daguerre, will be shown along with the playing of audio clips from other famous photographers.

Stieglitz works in both traditional and digital (wide format) photography and researches imaging history. Her images search for patterns and order in nature.

“I look for forms and patterns that have meaning for me,” Stieglitz said.