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Artist Spotlight |
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This Month We Spotlight Fellow ArtBeacon Artist Craig Ellenwood.
Craig Ellenwood is a photographer and printer currently residing in Honolulu. Craig's work can be seen and purchased from his web site: "Island Images".
Q:How did you find photography or how did it find you?
A: In 6th grade, my Lincoln, NE school librarian, Mary Anne Satterfield, gave me a camera and taught me how to develop and make black and white prints of my own pictures. The darkroom was a little closet sized area in the library, but there was something magical about the process. Working in the dark by the glow of the red light and watching an image slowly appear on the paper really was exciting and I was hooked. In high school, I got my pre-requisites out of the way early enough to spend my entire senior studying photography. I took every photo class offered by then and was allowed to set my own curriculum, I was in the darkroom for 5 class periods. That's when I started to explore color photography, printing and image manipulation.
Q:Who or what influenced your pursuit of photography?
A: My high school photography teacher, Mr. Christensen was very encouraging. He taught me technique and a broad history of photography. As for professional influences, Jerry Uelsmann was the first photographer that really moved me. His darkroom compositing techniques were amazing... and still are. What he did in the darkroom using multiple burns and exposures 25 years ago takes ten layers in Photoshop today. It wasn't uncommon for me to spend the entire school day working on one print in the darkroom. In college, I discovered Richard Misrach's color work in his "Desert Canto" series. The size, fineness and subtle color of his photographs were amazing to me. It was around that time I began working in color almost exclusively.
Q: How did you get involved in printing?
A: I moved to Santa Barbara, CA when I was about 19. A friend who worked at a lab there got me a job on the graveyard shift. That's where I honed my color skills and learned how to work very, very fast. Looking for a change of pace, I moved to San Francisco, CA in 1990. Around that time, I took a break from photography for avant-garde video art. I used an Amiga computer to make and record these weird cut up animations to VHS. I used twenty small, black and white news service monitors in different configurations to show my work. (This mostly happened at the early SF events like Toontown and Mr. Floppy parties.) Those pieces led to my audio/video production work with the band Psychic TV. Shortly after that, I had the chance to spend some time in India. So, I bought a Nikon 35mm and Hasselblad medium format to document my trip, and fell in love with photography again.
Q: How did you get from your earliest start of printing to printing for other renowned photographers? Who are some notable artists you've done printing work for?
A: After six months in India, I returned to San Francisco looking for a job and dropped off an application at a lab just down the street from my loft. It turned out to be the lab where Richard Misrach had his work printed. His personal printer was leaving, so I jumped at the chance. I worked closely with Richard for seven years, and it was a rewarding challenge. His prints were 4x6 feet and still being done by hand in a darkroom. They had to be beyond perfect. I printed his retrospective at the National Gallery in Washington, DC, and feel honored to have worked on that project. Through Richard, I got to meet and print for other greats such as Joel Meyerowitz and Sally Mann. It's great to be able to work with people you admire, who also appreciate your work. My knowledge of color and darkroom techniques produced some great partnerships. Before moving to Hawaii in 2003, I was working with Rondal Partridge and learning about platinum printing. Rondal is Imogen Cunningham's son, he was also Dorthea Lange's assistant. He was a good friend of Ansel Adams and was right there at the start of the fine art photography movement. Rondal is almost 90 years old, but sharp as a tack and has more energy than I do most of the time. I really enjoyed and miss my time with him.
Q: Over the last 10 and 20 years much has changed in how photos are made and printed. What technological changes have influenced what you do for yourself and others in regard to photography and printing?
A: Photoshop has to be the biggest leap. In the right hands, Photoshop is everything you can do in the darkroom, plus a whole lot more. I'm constantly using it and learning more techniques. As far as printing goes, a few large format printers are used instead of trying to replicate the same dodging and burning by hand, you can output a print that's 50x120 inches and have total consistency in how it reproduces each print. I'm shooting all digital these days, too.
Q: Have these technological changes influenced your work or has your work adapted to this new technology?
A: From the camera to Photoshop to the prints, I have an all-digital workflow. The quality is just as good as traditional printing, possibly even better, and I have much more control. I'm not one of those people that say records sound better than CDs, but the larger megapixel cameras have surpassed 35 mm film quality. I'm eagerly awaiting the day when digital looks as good as an 8x10 transparency.
Q: What type of photography do you personally find the most satisfying?
A: I love working with Photoshop the same way I loved working in the darkroom. You never really know if you have a great photo until you start getting your hands into it, so to speak. I will never hire anyone to do my retouching, I love it too much.
Q: It would seem from the work you have displayed that you have had an opportunity to travel. What have been some of your most notable trips and how did your photography play a role in these adventures?
A: India was a great personal and professional experience. I lived in a jungle area on the coast that was colonized by the Portuguese. Not much we are taught in the west can prepare you for living in the jungle. I rented a British motorcycle and learned how to ride it through herds of water buffalo. I also spent a lot of time in a ruined city called Hampi. The ancient Hindus carved temples out of granite boulders strewn across the landscape. I'd explore, walking about 15 miles/day and sleep in the temples at night. Despite a pretty big communication barrier, the people I met helped me capture it on film and I was made to feel welcome wherever I went.
Q: On the note of travel, you currently reside in Hawaii. How did you find your way to an area many consider paradise?
A: It was a cold summer day in San Francisco that made me move! (I'm only half kidding.) I missed the tropical weather I had in India and was eager to do some underwater photography. I've since hooked up with some expert divers and photographers. I'm learning a lot from Carl Roessler right now. He was one of the pioneers of underwater photography and another ex-Bay Arean. I love it here, but miss the Bay Area in many ways.
Q: What types of influence has residing in Hawaii had on your work?
A: Much of Hawaiian history has been passed down through art and hula. Each dance tells a story of a historical event. It's beautiful and powerful to watch and has inspired me to work on my visual story telling more than ever.
Q: What images (domestic or international) are most noteworthy to you and why?
A: I was able to select some of my favorite Ansel Adams images for a series of prints from the national archives in Washington, DC. Using high resolution scans, I spent hours retouching years of dust and scratches away, brought the contrast back to where it should be and am proud to offer part of my series on ArtBeacon.com. An example image can be seen to the right.
I like this one from my India gallery. I passed this shepherd boy on the road one day and motioned for him to turn around so I could take his picture. His cows just kept on going and the look in his eyes tells a story.
See image to the left.
I selected this photo from my Hawaii gallery. In Buddhist culture, it's customary to float lanterns out to sea in memory of someone who passed away that past year. I was up to my chest in water when I took this shot.
See image to the right.
Q: Are you shooting digital or film? What do you see as some of the pros and cons of each of these mediums?
A: I shoot digital for almost all of my work. I will shoot 4x5 or 8x10 if I need to, but would rather not deal with film processing, scanning, etc. My camera produces a 6.3 megapixel file as good as a top end 35 mm negative. I will be using it in my underwater work.
Q: As an off the wall ending to our interview... in the news story about your life, what would the headline say?
A: We never really understood him, but we learned from him.
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Did You Know? - All ArtBeacon Artist Sites Are Listed Under "Resources"
In the navigation a top every ArtBeacon page is a link titled "Resources". Clicking on this link will bring you to a page with several resource types including "Artist Web Sites".
You can display "Artist Web Sites" results by Name or Location.
NOTE: Individual artist site results are displayed automatically once a site/store is published. Content for these automatic site/store references are pulled from "About The Store", "Store Name" (from your "Site/Store Settings" page) and "City"/"State" (from your "Account Information").
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