After Ansel Adams at the Museum of Photographic Arts

After Ansel Adams at the Museum of Photographic Arts by Aline SmithsonJune 30, 2014

Mountains + Valleys (Yosemite #4),
Millee Tibbs
Archival digital print
Courtesy of the artist
(c) Millee Tibbs

A wonderful exhibition curated by the very talented Chantel Paul recently opened at the Museum of Photographic Arts in San Diego. After Ansel Adams runs through September 28th, 2014 and is a nod to the timeless work of Ansel Adams and those who have followed in his footsteps. His photographs continue to inspire contemporary photographers working today. The exhibition highlights original photographs by Ansel Adams reflecting the stunning natural beauty of National Parks of the American West, and also features the work of nine contemporary photographers who have photographed and examined the same landscape.

Mountains + Valleys (Monument Valley #1, Diptych),
Millee Tibbs
Archival digital print
Courtesy of the artist
(c) Millee Tibbs

After Ansel Adams celebrates Ansel Adams as an artist whose masterful views of America’s National Parks have influenced generations of photographers, and explores how nine contemporary photographers have created new interpretations of the American West in some of the most iconic landscapes. Exhibited alongside Adams’ own photographs made in Western National Parks, their images invite us to consider how different artists approach similar subject matter in this landscape, resulting in startlingly unique works. While some are working directly in the footsteps of Adams, others have used the framework of his photographs to develop their own ideas and artistic vision.

Since Yellowstone became America’s first national park in 1872, these designated areas of preserved land have become essential to defining and categorizing our country’s natural beauty, serving as the subject for countless images by surveyors, tourists, and artists alike. Decades after Adams’ passing in 1984, it is remarkable to consider the number of ways in which these landscapes have continued to inspire successive generations of artists.

From unique photographic processes to conceptually based photographs, the images in the exhibition vary in each artist’s intent, from capturing quiet moments of natural beauty to physically manipulating or layering historical and personal connections to place. In addition to Ansel Adams, photographers included in the exhibition are Mark Klett & Byron Wolfe, Binh Danh, Chris McCaw, Donna J. Wan, Michael Lundgren, Millee Tibbs, Matthew Brandt, and Takeshi Shikama.

Mountains + Valleys (Canyonlands #1),
Millee Tibbs
Archival digital print
Courtesy of the artist
(c) Millee Tibbs

At the Edge of the Lake (Pinnacles National Park, California)
Donna J. Wan
Archival inkjet print
Courtesy of the artist
(c) Donna J. Wan

On the Yellow Mountain (Death Valley)
Donna J. Wan
Archival inkjet print
Courtesy of the artist
(c) Donna J. Wan

In the Fog (Haleakalā National Park, Maui)
Donna J. Wan
Archival inkjet print
Courtesy of the artist
(c) Donna J. Wan

Cake Icing, 2012
Matthew Brandt
Cake icing on paper (multi layered silkscreen print)
©Matthew Brandt, Courtesy of the artist and M+B Gallery

Chinese BBQ Sauce, 2009
Matthew Brandt
Chinese BBQ sauce on paper (multi layered silkscreen print)
©Matthew Brandt, Courtesy of the artist and M+B Gallery

Cathedral Rocks and Cathedral Spires, Yosemite, CA, May 11, 2012
Binh Danh
Dauguerrotype, Unique (in camera exposure)
Courtesy of the artist and Haines Gallery, San Francisco
© Binh Danh

Lower Yosemite Fall, Yosemite, CA, 1:32 pm, June 12, 2012
Binh Danh
Dauguerrotype, Unique (in camera exposure)
Courtesy of the artist and Haines Gallery, San Francisco
© Binh Danh

Yosemite Falls, Yosemite, CA, May 27, 2012
Binh Danh
Dauguerrotype, Unique (in camera exposure)
Courtesy of the artist and Haines Gallery, San Francisco
© Binh Danh

Confluence, 2006
Michael Lundgren
Archival pigment prints
© Michael Lundgren, courtesy of the artist

Confluence, 2006
Michael Lundgren
Archival pigment prints
© Michael Lundgren, courtesy of the artist

Rock formations on the road to Lee’s Ferry, AZ, 2008
Mark Klett and Byron Wolfe
Digital inkjet print
Courtesy of the artists
© Mark Klett and Byron Wolfe

Moonrise above Point Sublime, 2008
Mark Klett and Byron Wolfe
Digital inkjet print
Courtesy of the artists
© Mark Klett and Byron Wolfe

Sunburned GSP #768(Pacific Ocean), 2014
Chris McCaw
Unique gelatin silver paper negative
Courtesy of the artist
© Chris McCaw

Silent Respiration of Forests #2, 2010
Takeshi Shikama
Platinum palladium print, Japanese hand made Gampi paper
Courtesy of the artist
© Takeshi Shikama

Silent Respiration of Forests #5, 2010
Takeshi Shikama
Platinum palladium print, Japanese hand made Gampi paper
Courtesy of the artist
© Takeshi Shikama

Silent Respiration of Forests #17, 2010
Takeshi Shikama
Platinum palladium print, Japanese hand made Gampi paper
Courtesy of the artist
© Takeshi Shikama