Welcome back to Outside Influence, a blog that traces the post-WWII history of creative photography in Colorado. Before we go any further, I thought I’d answer a few questions that have come up.
This blog is based on three-plus years and counting of research into what I think of as a foundational period leading to today’s “contemporary” practice. By creative I mean expressive, experimental, fine art, non-commercial photography - artwork that does on occasion include assignment projects but excludes out-and-out commercial practice: fashion, for example.
I’m hoping this will culminate in a book , which I am calling Outside Influence. My target publication date is mid-2022. I should stress that while my research is thoroughly referenced it is not an academic thesis, nor is it a critique. Rather, it is an accessible biographical narrative written with a general audience in mind, yet will also serve as a resource suitable for post-graduate students.
David Hiser: Cherie Hiser and Dale Raisig in front of Center of the Eye office, Aspen, 1970. Courtesy of David Hiser.
The title Outside Influence has a double intent: to suggest regional influences coming into the state, and to acknowledge Colorado photography’s historic association with the landscape. “Colorado photography” is often interpreted to mean scenic nature studies, but my intention is to survey anything and anybody who has made significant contributions to the creative end of the spectrum.
Why 1945–95? Pre-WWII photography in Colorado is well known, and its post-1995 digital era is relatively accessible and easily researched. There is a void when it comes to the mid–late 20th century period of photographic innovation, however, and I fear the history of its practice and practitioners may well disappear unless it is recorded soon.
Myron Wood: Sheep, Storm, South Park, 1967. Pikes Peak Library District. Myron Wood Collection. 002-1269.
If you have resources to lend or knowledge and ideas to share, please let me know via the comments section. Please Subscribe, and visit “ColoradoPhotoHistory” on Instagram to view more images from the project.
The next post narrates the activities of Ellen Manchester (below) and the Rephotographic Survey Project based at Colorado Mountain College in Breckenridge during the seventies.
Thanks for reading!
Peter de Lory: Ellen Manchester, Colorado, ca. 1970s. Courtesy of Peter de Lory.