Are you an Artist or a Photographer? Are you a photographer artist? Or an artist photographer? Is there a difference? (Have you ever thought about it before?)
If you are a photographic artist, where is your studio? Is it a small dark room filled with odoriferous chemicals? Is it a desk with a great big computer monitor (or two) that you sit in front of until your significant other asks you with that slight tone in their voice “aren’t you coming to bed yet?”. Is it a light controlled room with tables, chairs, props, and multiple light stands and reflectors? Or is it out there, in the world that you photograph: on that wind swept beach, under the canopy of tall buildings, illuminated by that wonderful natural light source we call the sun?
What is the view from your Studio?
If you have the pleasure of reading Ted Orland’s book The View From the Studio Door, your answer might just change by the time you reach the last page. I recently had the great pleasure of having Ted send me a copy of this book. I had contacted him regarding his inclusion in the Quote Archive; I had gotten a few quotes from this book out of a reprinting of a chapter in LensWork and he offered to send me the original source so I could reference the quotes accurately! (his generosity has already paid off…as I purchased two more copies for my sister.)
Ted’s Biography speaks toward his authority on the topics of art and photography:
Ted Orland lives in Santa Cruz, California, where he pursues parallel careers in teaching, writing & photography. He began his professional career working as a young graphic artist for designer Charles Eames, and in the 1970’s became Ansel Adams’ Assistant and printer of Adams’ Special Edition Yosemite Prints. Ted taught traditional camerawork at Adams’ Annual Yosemite Workshop for fifteen years, and currently teaches digital photography at Cabrillo College, as well lecturing and offering Master Class workshops nationally.
Ted is co-author (with David Bayles) of the long-term best-seller Art & Fear, and author of its recently released counterpart, The View From The Studio Door. He is also author of Man & Yosemite, a history of nineteenth century Yosemite as revealed in photographs of the period. (And on a much lighter note, he created the underground classic Photographic Truths poster.) Ted is also founder/owner of Image Continuum Press, which published all of those works.
Ted’s photography is widely exhibited and is included in major museum collections nationally, including those at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the Corcoran Gallery of Art (Washington, D.C.), the Amon Carter Museum (Dallas TX) and the National Museum of Modern Art (Kyoto, Japan). A large selection of Ted’s earlier photographic art appears in his monograph Scenes of Wonder & Curiosity (and several examples of his current work appear in Michelle Bates’ new book, Plastic Cameras: Toying With Reality). Ted’s artwork is represented by The Ansel Adams Gallery.
In this book (which is in it’s second edition and has wonderful related thoughts from Ted and his readers in the margins), Ted explores the idea of “How Artist Find Their Way in An Uncertain World”. Since Ted is a photographer, a number of his references are back toward photography. However, I would not call this a photography book. This is a book for those who are exploring the world around them. For those who might have been called an “Artist” by someone, but not thought themselves so. For anyone who feels that artistic spark and doesn’t completely understand it, this book might provide them some gentle clues.
At 133 pages and with Ted’s wonderful writing style, The View From the Studio Door reads quickly. I have found it to be a great way to unwind at the end of the day. Thanks for sharing a copy of it with me Ted!
If any of the items I’ve talked about above resonate with you, order a copy from Ted immediately. It will be the best $12 that you have ever spent. (If the price goes up in the near future, blame me…I told Ted I thought his book was worth much more…)
And in Ted’s own words:
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