ALCHEMY + ANGST @ 82 with Jerry Uelsmann at SUMA

Published: October 27, 2016 | Author: Lola Taylor | Read Time: 3 minutes

The Southern Utah Museum of Art (SUMA) is proud to announce that photographer Jerry Uelsmann’s exhibit ALCHEMY + ANGST @ 82 will be on display from November 3 to November 30. SUU’s Art & Design Department is hosting an Art Insights featuring an artist talk by Uelsmann on November 3, 2016, at 7:00 pm in the Southern Utah Museum of Art. Admission is free, and the general public is invited to attend.

Uelsmann hails from Detroit, Michigan, where his interest in photography was sparked at the age of fourteen. and received his BFA from the Rochester Institute of Technology in 1957. Continuing his education, Uelsmann received his MS and MFA at Indiana University in 1960. Uelsmann immediately began teaching photography at the University of Florida in Gainesville, where he became a graduate research professor of art in 1974.

He has received numerous awards and recognition for his spectacular prints, including the Guggenheim Fellowship in 1967 and a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship in 1972. Uelsmann’s photographs are in museum permanent collections around the world. Some of these museums are the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the National Gallery of Australia, the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

Uelsmann is known for his almost magical ability of creating visually stunning prints in a darkroom. At the age of 82, even after many years of practicing his craft, Uelsmann continues working in the darkroom to explore the options and possibilities of developing prints from film negatives. He creates his composites from analog images, using photo manipulation to create his masterpieces. Despite technological advances in digital photography, Uelsmann is still committed to working in a darkroom and loves watching his prints appear in the developer.

When asked about his artistic work, Uelsmann said, “Ultimately, my hope is to amaze myself.”

Samuel Davis, Assistant Professor of Photography at SUU, said, “I met Jerry around seventeen years ago when I took the opportunity to be his studio assistant. During that time, and the years since, I've come to know his work on a deeply personal level and the great importance it has played in the lives of so many photographers and artists. There are few artists working with analog photography that have had such a profound impact on the landscape medium in the way that Jerry Uelsmann has.”

When asked about the prints that were chosen for Uelsmann’s exhibit, Davis said, “Keeping in mind the educational mission of SUMA, I chose work that demonstrates Jerry's technical prowess and conceptual process in order to create a dialog with our students. I have a personal connection to many pieces, having worked in the studio during their creation or re-printing.”

The title of Uelsmann’s artist talk is ALCHEMY +  ANGST @ 82. This titles tips its hat to text message formatting and is also the title of Uelsmann’s current body of work and exhibitions. During his presentation, Uelsmann will talk about art and photography and his personal visual quest over his last 60 years as an artist.

Art Insights is hosted during the fall and spring semesters by SUU’s Art & Design faculty. Students and community members meet to experience presentations and discussions by visiting artists and art educators from around the nation who share their work and insights.

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