Known for his attention and passion for the technical
aspects of print making, Ansel Adams became a consultant for Edwin Land and the
Polaroid Corporation in 1948. He tested film and products for the ensuing 35
years, memorably noting in his posthumously published autobiography that, "Many of my most successful
photographs from the 1950's onward have been made on Polaroid film. One look at
the tonal quality of the print I have achieved should convince the uninitiated
of the truly superior quality of Polaroid film." Adams’s influence
extended beyond the camera, in recruiting other well-known and important
photographers to use Polaroid cameras and be incorporated into what became a
landmark collection.
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These small-format Polaroids represent two qualities not often
associated with Adams: a small scale and color. Adams felt somewhat constrained
by the color process, feeling he could exert little control over what he saw.
Nonetheless, he wrote extensively about the process, describing his successes
and experiments. These small studies also reflect Adams’s interest in expanding
his notion of landscape photography by incorporating more details. And indeed,
by focusing on the intimate, the whole, those broad, sublime landscapes, become
clearer.
In this group of photographs, Adams seems to be considering
the interplay between color, dimension and contrast. "Color, physically or psychologically considered,” he
wrote, “is extremely complex. While we have good reason to believe all persons
with normal vision see colors the same way, the significance of colors may vary with each
individual." Here, greens, oranges and blues layer, showcasing the texture
and richness of Adams’s subjects.
Labels: 20th Century Photographs, Ansel Adams, Polaroid