LEXINGTON, MA.-Combining the delights of “sight and sound” at the National Heritage Museum in Lexington, Polaroid’s “Fins, Wings and Other Such Things” photography exhibit of nature’s bounty is accompanied by Lexington Symphony Orchestra concerts.

Surprising fine art images of a multitude of living creatures captured by artists for starring roles as subjects were selected from The Polaroid Collection. The company’s global influence on creating art history is preserved in a treasured archive of over 16,000 museum quality images.

In this winter’s unusual exhibit curated by Polaroid’s Barbara Hitchcock, “Fins, Wings and Other Such Things” showcases the unceasing wonders of nature. “From the inception of instant photography over 50 years ago, Polaroid has promoted the arts. What began as research activity by Ansel Adams evolved into its Artist Support Program. Both artists and Polaroid benifited as art is selected to build Polaroid’s permanent archives,” explains Hitchcock. Polaroid’s fine art travels the world and is also located in permanent museum exhibits in France and Switzerland.

At the National Heritage Museum William Wegman’s renowned pet Weimaraner dogs are lovingly depicted in humorous poses captured by Polaroid’s rare 20x24 instant camera. Another creature deserving of attention, one finds a rare studio portrait of a seemingly proud rooster by Bettina Rheims.

But would you expect to see barnyard pigs in all their pragmatic glory? Imagine the entertainment in discovering princely pigs interpreted by the classical music of the Lexington Symphony Orchestra. This dual cultural adventure in “sight and sound” can be experienced on February 9 at the National Heritage Museum and again on February 10 with a special children’s workshop and concert.

Meet the Beetles - Artist Andrea Wolff is an insect fan and reveals “the beauty of the anatomical structure” in her six sepia toned images in a series titled “Meet the Beetles.” Swarming with all forms of life, fantastic spiders become celebrities in the natural world, juxtaposed with Lynn Butler’s works photographed while riding galloping horses, creating the sensation of movement.

The collaboration between the Lexington Symphony Orchestra’s Music Director Jonathan McPhee and Polaroid’s Hitchcock emerged in harmony with their common goal.

Once the two had decided on the images, McPhee “juggled both mediums” in his computer to choreograph images of crabs and cockatoos projected on a screen as the symphony performs pieces by Felix Mendelssohn, Jean Sibelius and other composers. “It’s all about the expression behind the presentation,” McPhee says.