Semester 1 Final
For my final, I chose "Oak Tree, Snowstorm" by Ansel Adams. Ansel Adams was a renowned photographer and environmentalist. He was born in 1902 in San Fransisco and first traveled to Yosemite at the age of 14. He was homeschooled and received no formal training in photography. In 1919 he joined the Sierra Club (a group advocating for environmental protection) and worked as a trip photographer for High Sierra tour groups. In 1927 Adams shot a photo of Half Dome that would lead him to major acclaim: "Monolith, the Face of Half Dome". Despite his acclaim as a photographer Adams also worked as a concert pianist. During his lifetime Adams worked as a commercial photographer for a variety of companies as well as the National Park Service. His profound photographs would aid in the creation of Kings Canyon National Park in 1940. In 1980 President Carter honored Adams with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and after his death in 1984, the wilderness south of Yosemite was named the Ansel Adams Wilderness. The photo that interested me the most was "Oak Tree, Snowstorm" which he took in 1948. It interested me because my grandparents have a print of the image in their house and I went to Yosemite and was struck by beauty of the place. In Yosemite I went to the Ansel Adams Gallery where I was able to see not only Adam's photographs but the place where he displayed his own work in Yosemite. The construction of this piece was rather difficult due to the fragile nature of the branches of the tree. I decided to make the tree a wall hanging to be able to have it lie flat while working on it. The leaves were also a difficult part of the construction because it is quite difficult to capture the effect of snow covered leaves on an oak tree. If I were to create this piece again I would spend more time on the leaves and layering the underglaze to look more like snow. I would also make the piece less fragile because it broke when I was moving it and I had to glue it back together with glaze. Overall I am happy about how the piece turned out because it does look like an oak tree but I would spend a lot more time focsuing on really capturing Adam's image if I were to make it again.
Research Site: National Park Service: Ansel Adams