With Carol Fonde and António José Costa….. My two longtime collaborators to whom I owe intense gratitude…. and the only printers who touch my negatives. I joke they have the ‘prima-donna gene’ of all master printers; but, they have honestly influenced my style and development of seeing photographically more than anyone. Carol is the world’s finest color printer (with early clients Newton and Avedon) coming to NYC weekly from Maine to teach color printing at Parsons. António, the master black and white printer at his Viragem laboratory in Lisbon, was in NYC for his maiden visit. I could not resist having them meet and celebrating our gift of light. They are an extension of my eyes. Thank you both.
ThiscomingNovemberthe Cultural Center of Cascais will host the Ted Witek exhibition, North South, East West. Curated by Hilda Yasseri, the images represent a personal sense of place across the Provinces of Canada and up and down the country of Portugal. Sponsored in part by the Canadian Embassy in Portugal, all images are printed from original negatives on silver gelatine fibre by master printer António José Costa in Lisbon.
Stay tuned for more information as theNovember opening night approaches.
Ted seldom passes through a city without getting a glimpse of a current photography exhibition. ” I spend a significant portion of my down time viewing of photography books as relaxing inspiration, but I enjoy most being very close to a print, especially when prepared in classic silver gelatine style” Before all of my travels, I scan the notices of shows that I believe will be of aesthetic interest and often pass through on my way from or to the airport. I do not need much time to be inspired.”
In Full Light
Herb Ritts
Cultural Center of Cascais
Having seen a small collection of Herb Ritts’ vintage prints on display earlier this year at London’s Hamilton Gallery, I was pleased to learn of the 106 print show “In Full Light” at The Cultural Center of Cascais (through January 21st) in my former neighborhood just outside Lisbon. Ritts, born in LA and with us for only 50 years before his death in 2002, was behind numerous iconic fashion photographs and advertisements of our time as well as direction of several commercials and music videos such as Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Game” (with extraordinary contributions from mother nature that few realize).
It is not difficult to appreciate each and every one of these photographs; however, the high proportion of images captured outside the studio are most illustrative of his aesthetic genius. Curator Alessandra Mauro notes his California upbringing was behind “his natural inclination for light, materials, and color,” with several images reflecting ‘the tactile elements of materials exalting the human skin in relation to water, sand, fabric, and mud.’ In simple words, he spent a lot of time with his camera on the beach.
In addition to beauty and fashion, there is a large display of his portraits, including the iconic Madonna who was on hand to open the exhibition in her new home in Portugal.
